what is a loan officer 
a loan officer is a representative of a bank credit union or other financial institution who assists borrowers in the application process 1 loan officers are often called mortgage loan officers since that is the most complex and costly type of loan most consumers encounter however most loan officers assist consumers and small business owners with a wide variety of secured and unsecured loans loan officers must have a comprehensive knowledge of lending products banking industry rules and regulations and the required documentation for obtaining a loan loan officers that assist with mortgages must be licensed through the nationwide multistate licensing system and registry nmls 2