Mortgage Broker vs. Mortgage Banker

Either a mortgage broker or a loan officer may work with you when you're looking to get a mortgage loan. As a new home is the result of the work of both mortgage broker and loan officer, people usually confuse the two. But as you enter your application process, it will benefit you if you know they ways they differ.

About Mortgage Brokers

During the mortgage loan process, an individual or company who is an independent agent for both mortgage loan borrower and lender is a mortgage broker. Your mortgage broker will stand as facilitator between you and the lending institution; which can be a bank, trust company, credit union, mortgage corporation, finance company or even an individual, private investor. You use a mortgage broker to look at your financial circumstance and find the lender who has the best mortgage loan for you. Your broker will present your loan application to a handful of lenders, and works with the chosen lender until the loan closes. The broker gets a commission from the borrower if the loan closes.

Mortgage Bankers

The most important difference between a mortgage broker and a mortgage banker is that a loan officer works on behalf of a lending institution (a bank, credit union, or others) to process loans solely from the programs of that institution. Although a mortgage banker may promote quite a range of loans, they will be programs of that lender alone.

Your loan officer represents you to the bank or other lending institution. The mortgage banker will guide you through the selection, processing and closing of the loan. Loan officers are paid a commission or salary for their services by their employers.