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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Loan Clerk

💰 $30,000 - $50,000

FinanceBankingCustomer ServiceAdministrativeMortgage

🎯 Role Definition

A Loan Clerk is an administrative and operational specialist who supports lending operations by preparing, reviewing, and tracking loan documentation; verifying borrower information and creditworthiness; coordinating with underwriters, processors, and external parties; and ensuring loans meet internal policies and regulatory requirements. This role is critical for accurate loan origination, timely closings, and maintaining compliance with federal and state lending rules.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Customer Service Representative in Banking or Call Center
  • Administrative Assistant or Office Coordinator in Financial Services
  • Junior Clerical or Data Entry roles supporting a mortgage or loan team

Advancement To:

  • Loan Processor or Mortgage Loan Processor
  • Underwriter Assistant or Mortgage Underwriter (with additional training)
  • Senior Loan Clerk / Loan Operations Specialist
  • Branch Operations Manager or Credit Analyst

Lateral Moves:

  • Collections Specialist
  • Escrow or Title Assistant
  • Account Servicing Representative

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Receive, open, and organize incoming loan applications and supporting documents, ensuring every file contains required forms, signatures, and disclosures prior to submission to processing or underwriting.
  • Review loan applications for completeness and accuracy, flagging missing information or inconsistencies and routing corrections to borrowers, loan officers, or referral partners.
  • Verify borrower identity, employment, income, assets, and liabilities by contacting employers, banks, and credit reporting agencies, and document verification results in the loan file.
  • Order and track third-party services required for underwriting and closing (appraisals, title reports, flood determinations, and credit reports), and reconcile invoices against purchase orders.
  • Enter and update borrower and loan data into the Loan Origination System (LOS) and internal tracking spreadsheets, ensuring data integrity and adherence to naming and folder conventions.
  • Prepare and assemble final closing packages and loan documents (promissory notes, security instruments, disclosures) per lender and investor guidelines and deliver to title/closing agents.
  • Coordinate scheduling between borrowers, loan officers, closing agents, and real estate agents to ensure timely closings and to resolve any scheduling conflicts or documentation delays.
  • Monitor loan status through processing and underwriting stages, generate regular status reports for loan officers and management, and proactively escalate stalled files to prevent fallout.
  • Conduct pre-funding and post-closing quality control reviews to ensure loan packages meet investor, regulatory, and company quality standards before funding or sale.
  • Maintain familiarity with applicable lending regulations and disclosure requirements (e.g., TRID, RESPA, TILA, ECOA) and ensure timely preparation and distribution of required consumer disclosures.
  • Assist underwriters by pulling income and asset documentation, summarizing borrower explanations, and preparing exception memos or underwriting support documents.
  • Manage communications with borrowers, loan officers, vendors, and internal stakeholders using phone, email, and secure portals; create clear, professional status updates and request follow-ups as needed.
  • Reconcile loan numbers, escrow and payoff statements, and outstanding conditions, and prepare payoffs or payoff statements for payoff requests and loan payoffs.
  • Maintain filing systems (electronic and/or paper) for active and closed loans, ensuring records retention policies are followed and audit-ready documentation is available.
  • Track and report pipeline metrics such as turn-times, days-to-close, fix-rate of loan conditions, and backlog to drive process improvements and operational goals.
  • Validate compliance checklists and ensure adverse action notices or conditional approvals are issued in accordance with regulatory timelines when credit or application decisions change.
  • Process and document loan modifications, extensions, cancellations, and reinstatements; coordinate required documentation and communicate impacts to borrowers.
  • Support loan funding activities including verifying wire instructions, preparing funding authorizations, and coordinating with finance to release funds per lender procedures.
  • Respond to audit requests and internal or external quality reviews by retrieving documentation, providing file narratives, and executing corrective actions determined by compliance teams.
  • Maintain up-to-date knowledge of investor overlays and product guidelines (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, USDA) and apply overlays consistently during document assembly and pre-funding checks.
  • Apply fraud detection procedures by reviewing credit reports, verifying chain-of-title and identity documentation, and escalating suspicious activity to the compliance or fraud prevention team.
  • Train and mentor junior clerical staff or new hires on LOS usage, document naming conventions, compliance checklists, and standard operating procedures to improve team efficiency.

Secondary Functions

  • Assist with generation of regular management reports on pipeline health, delinquency trends, and operational KPIs to support decision-making and resource allocation.
  • Help maintain and improve standard operating procedures (SOPs), checklists, and knowledge base articles to reduce processing errors and accelerate onboarding.
  • Participate in cross-functional meetings with underwriting, closings, and sales teams to design process improvements and eliminate recurring documentation bottlenecks.
  • Support ad-hoc audits and special projects such as system migrations, LOS upgrades, or implementation of new investor/product requirements.
  • Serve as backup point of contact for customer inquiries during peak periods or when senior team members are unavailable, ensuring uninterrupted servicing of borrower needs.
  • Coordinate with IT or LOS administrators to report user issues, recommend small enhancements, and test system fixes related to loan file management and reporting.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Proficient with Loan Origination Systems (LOS) such as Ellie Mae Encompass, Calyx Point, LendingQB, or similar platforms.
  • Strong knowledge of mortgage and consumer loan documentation, including promissory notes, security instruments, closing disclosures, and title/escrow packages.
  • Experience with credit report analysis and pulling/verifying credit scores, tradeline information, and public records relevant to loan decisions.
  • Familiarity with investor guidelines and overlays (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, USDA) and the ability to apply them in document preparation and QC.
  • Working knowledge of federal and state lending regulations (TRID, RESPA, TILA, ECOA) and required consumer disclosure timing.
  • Competence in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel for tracking/analytics, Word for document templates, Outlook for communication).
  • Accurate and fast data entry skills with strong attention to detail and ability to maintain data integrity across systems.
  • Experience ordering and interpreting third-party reports (appraisals, title commitments, flood determinations) and managing vendor communications.
  • Ability to prepare funding authorizations, wire instructions, and reconcile funding exceptions with finance teams.
  • Familiarity with electronic signature and secure document exchange platforms (DocuSign, Laserfiche, secure borrower portals).
  • Basic reconciling and record-keeping skills for payoffs, escrows, and investor remittances.

Soft Skills

  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills for clear borrower and stakeholder interactions.
  • Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple loan files simultaneously with competing deadlines.
  • High level of integrity and discretion when handling confidential borrower and financial information.
  • Problem-solving mindset with the ability to research issues, identify root causes, and recommend practical solutions.
  • Customer-focused attitude with patience and empathy when guiding borrowers through documentation and closing processes.
  • Team player who collaborates effectively with loan officers, underwriters, processors, and vendors.
  • Adaptability and capacity to work efficiently in a fast-paced, regulatory-driven environment.
  • Strong prioritization and time management skills to meet SLAs and department goals.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • High school diploma or GED.

Preferred Education:

  • Associate's degree or Bachelor's degree in Finance, Business Administration, Accounting, or a related field preferred.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Finance
  • Accounting
  • Business Administration
  • Real Estate
  • Economics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 0–3 years of experience in banking, mortgage operations, loan documentation, or related clerical role.

Preferred:

  • 1–3 years of direct experience processing or clerical-supporting consumer or mortgage loans, familiarity with LOS platforms, and working knowledge of common lending regulations and investor requirements.
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