When you are ready to buy a new home, it is important to find the right mortgage officer for your needs. Some mortgage officers specialize in very unique products for unique situations, meaning if you fit that need, the officer is great for you, but if you don’t, he probably won’t be of much help. Others are generalists, meaning they know a little about everything, buy may not have the expertise for a client in a very complicated situation. And then there are those who split the middle; very deep knowledge in a few products, with broad knowledge across the board.

Knowing this upfront helps you to weed out potential loan officers. If, for instance, you notice a loan officer’s eyes start to glaze over when you discuss your needs, there is a good chance you either have a specialized need that the officer is not equipped to handle, or you have a more general need in an area the officer is not really accustomed to working in. Either way, the officer is probably not a good fit.

To help prevent these deficiencies, many loan officers work in a team approach; the generalist will meet with clients and get any required specialists involved. This is a great approach in many ways, except you can often be left wondering who your loan officer truly is. For this reason, I work as a member of a team with both deep knowledge and general knowledge mortgage officers; we work together to solve client problems as they arrive, without ever inconveniencing the client with multiple meetings.

Beyond the knowledge base of the loan officer, however, you also want to look at the organization the officer works for. I like to think that mortgage banks (like my parent company, Ross Mortgage) are the most flexible lenders in the market right now. They provide competitive rates, a multitude of products, and personalized service Working with a mortgage broker can be difficult, because they are regulated differently than true banking institutions, and they will usually add fees on top of the mortgage to cover their costs. Working with a big bank, meanwhile, can be difficult as they are stuck in very strict corporate policies, and are more concerned with the “overall portfolio” than the individual client.

And the last thing to consider is personality. Do you “gel” with the loan officer? If not, it will be hard to get through the process no matter how great he or she might be.

If you are looking for a qualified mortgage officer and want some more ideas on how to find the right one for you, please contact me. And if you have any other important factors to consider when looking for a mortgage officer, please leave a comment.