I was a former dumbass from Ameriquest Mortgage on the West Coast as a loan officer. I bought the bull that we were there to do the "right thing". Wrong.
The whole company pay structure is in a way that you are pressured to do anything to close those loans. The pay structure is a flat salary then you get a bonus from each loan that adds up. If you closed one loan you would get about $10 if you worry lucky.
Now the trick is there is no percentage per loan. It is ran by revenue made from each loan. This revenue is calculated by the points charged, loan value, and other variables. Basically to make money in the company a loan officer had to close about 5 loans a month. That is a closing a week. But when I left in disgust they were talking about 8 loans is what a good officer should be closing per month. The manager holds you to that quota because he gets his cut.
Can you imagine the desperation of having to make cold calls to find new loans, then sell the loans, then close the loans in a month. All the while the manager is always on your back to do better. Now the good stuff. If you have no morales then they would do anything to get the check and the benefits.
Now training consisted of watching motivational videos for 3 days and then listening to the manager training you, which was nothing. Then you were put on the phones to call potential customers on a call list.
The call list was bought from marketers who would provide information on credit status, mortgage information, and bankruptcy info. You then would call the customer and read a script and make a pitch. Usually the customer would hang up, or have a better deal. Ameriquest thrives on desperation of the customers and loan officers. They are always hanging that golden carrot out in front of everyone but never able to reach.
The next little trick is that you are taught at signing to rush the deal so the client won't have time to read everything and to go over all items quickly. Everything is done last minute including processing so at signing it is hectic and always problematic. My suggestion that if you do a deal have the loan officer wait while you read EVERYTHING and then if you ask a question make sure it is answered before moving on.
Finally, they know that if you have any credit problems, money issues, or life stress issues they can usually sucker you in. Don't give into it. Always compare and shop around. But do be careful with who runs your credit.
If you give them your social security number and don't tell them not to run credit, they will. You should get a credit report with fico score from all three bureaus before you shop for a mortgage. They will try to beat you up on how bad your credit is and tell you that Ameriquest is the only company that can help you.
I want to say I tried to do my best and help people. I am truly sorry that I couldn't give people the best rates and save them money but I can give you insight to a very nasty business. I even suggested people go elsewhere. Please be careful with any mortgage because they are worried about the bottomline. Not you. Just to let you know.
It is common practice in the industry to type your loan application and at signing they have you sign. When you sign you are saying that to the best of your knowledge that you are saying that the information is accurate. At time of signing, you always demand to have all copies of all documents signed. Plus, if you payed for an appraisal and decided to go with another company you can contact Ameriquest and have them release the appraisal to the new mortgage company. You paid for it that is your appraisal. I hope this information helps and again I am sorry for not being a better loan officer. To this day, I am still out of the loan business.
Take care and watch your back
Bob
Moreno Valley, California
U.S.A.
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