In 2018, an MLO (Mortgage Loan Officer) was up for a promotion to become a sales manager of a team. As this officer was only working to help pay for his schooling, this promotion would mean that he would have to stop pursuing his education to meet the demands of the new role.
For him, money was never a huge motivator. It was simply a great way to pay for college. Due to the time and availability of the role, he asked if he could take some time to think about it.
He went back to his desk to continue working, where he found a letter from a previous client – a single mother of two boys. This client contacted him months before to get qualified for a loan. Unfortunately, at the time of the initial application, her credit score was too low to qualify.
When reviewing the borrower’s credit, there was an account with a high balance, so she could not be approved for a loan. The MLO recommended that the borrower pay the amount down and run the credit in a month. After the month had passed, he and the borrower spoke again and reran the credit. With the new credit report, she was able to qualify and purchase her home.
He didn’t give much thought at the time other than he was doing the job as an MLO.
Opening the letter, he thought it was a simple thank you letter like he had received in the past and read the letter.
It read:
“For eight years, I have been trying to purchase a house. No one, other than you, took more than 5 minutes to give me any direction on how to get there. Thank you for taking the time to guide me to give my sons an actual home.”
A photo of the borrower with her sons holding the keys in front of their home accompanied the letter. He went back to the original file and looked at the ages of the children, 8 and 2.
At this moment, he immediately remembered back to his childhood. Being the son of a single mother and watching her struggle to raise her own two sons, an overwhelming realization came over the MLO.
What we do produces an income, that is true. But, more importantly, we can have significant impacts on the lives of those we serve. We are not just loan officers, processors, or underwriters. We often help others achieve dreams that others have for themselves and their families. We can often have a genuine impact on their lives.
He took the position, left his degree in the past, and is still working in the industry. He still uses this message to help others understand the true meaning of what we do in the industry.
