Mortgage Officer vs Mortgage Broker - What's the difference?

There are many words used interchangeably to describe the entity/person that is coordinating the borrowing of money in a real estate transaction in Oregon. For example:

Lender

Bank

Mortgage officer

Mortgage Broker

Loan Officer

etc…

One of the most important distinctions amongst all of these words is the difference between Mortgage Officer and Mortgage Broker.

A mortgage officer works with just one bank. Therefore, a mortgage officer only has access to the programs that the one bank they work for offers. This could be to your benefit if the programs that bank offers fit your needs. For example, Umpqua has great first time home buyer programs. If you are a first time home buyer, it might be a good idea for you to check out Umpqua before choosing one lender over another. And a mortgage officer with Umpqua would have the greatest understanding of the programs that Umqua offers.

A mortgage broker does not work with just one bank. Instead, a mortgage officer will submit the buyers qualifications and information about the transaction to an open market where lending institutions can bid on the transaction. Best bid gets the deal.

Neither option is better or worse than the other. This is not a commercial for Umqua's first time home buyer programs. The best option is the one that best fits your particular needs, whether the winner of bids or the perfect program at a particular bank.