Stay away and do not work for this company. I started working here years ago and it was a way different company. So much has changed for the worse. Experienced loan officers and managers have left the company. The only experienced LO’s that stay are the ones who get extra privileges and extra pay. Turn-over is extremely high. As a new hire you will not get the dedicated attention you need to learn how to do the job right.
The Tech 1 program is inadequate, inconsistent, and unethical. The company claims it costs $17,000 to put a new hire through their training program and to get you up-to 10 state licenses. They expect you to pay it back if you resign and start working for another company if you resign within 2 years. The reality is that the cost for each license is in the hundreds not thousands. They use scare tactics to keep you as an indentured servant. So many LO’s want to quit but are afraid to so they force themselves to get fired. The program itself is flawed and has many gaps in training. They claim the process is 6 weeks but its inconsistent. Every Tech 1 class has difference experiences some classes last longer than others. After the Tech 1 class starts you will take the SAFE exam 10 days later and if you don’t pass you have to wait 30 days before you can retake it meanwhile you will be put to work as a junior banker aka the human phone dialer. The newly hired managers are part of the managements good ole boy club who he brought from other companies. Nepotism for sure.
They use their highest paid LO aka the million-dollar earner as a carrot to lure in new talent. The so called million-dollar earner calls your clients and under cuts you by offering a lower rate and says stuff like “he/she didn’t give you the best rate I can do better”. Super shady and cut throat. Ownership is ok with it and they give him extra pricing exceptions to make the deal happen. In addition, ownership allows their top producers to work 7 days a week (on Sundays) if they want. This is illegal but the company looks the other way. Ownership doesn’t care which LO submits the loan they just want to get paid. They love to say that the leads belong to the owners not the LO’s but they fail to realize that the LO’s are the ones who make the connection with the borrower.
The sales culture thrives on fear and subterfuge. Management has created an abrasive environment where loan officers will lose their deals to other loan officers at any moment for ridiculous reasons. For example, if you have a loan in seasoning (submitted deal on hold) and you do not leave notes in the system within a 2 week period, any agent can look into your file and take your client from your pipeline. There have been so many arguments, complaints to HR, and unnecessary stress dealing with this. I spoke to a client and gained his commitment to move forward with a refinance one day and needed a few documents to submit the loan. The very same day another LO calls my client and says that she is taking over my loan and requested that the documents be sent to her. My client was confused and upset once they found out this wasn’t true. When I asked the LO why she decided to call the client and flat out lied, she said her manager said it was ok to call my client. When I asked her manager why he allowed this to happen he said don’t worry about it and focus on getting new business and not crying over spilled milk. Another time, the management made it mandatory for all LO’s to run a preliminary underwriting approval on all loans, and if you didn’t do it he would send an email out to the entire sales team giving everyone the green light to take your loan. I have so many more examples but honestly this company and its cut throat culture are evil.
An individual did commit suicide in April of this year after his employment was terminated at SLG. The sad part is that no one at the company addressed it nor did they mention it. It’s like they swiped it under the rug and pretended it never happen. So much unnecessary stress from management for LO’s to perform yet they do not create an equal playing field. They give unfair advantages to their favorites and expect everyone else to accept it.
Forget about calling in sick or taking vacation, if you do then the management will reassign your loans to other agents. I honestly was fearful of taking any time off as it was looked down upon by management and I knew managers would give my leads away. You are expected to work 10 hours a day and you are micromanaged. They claim the average work week is 45 hours, please…not true. You have to run credit on all your calls otherwise you will get lectured on why it’s important to run credit even if there’s no deal.
The work environment is extremely unprofessional. There is no dress code. Loan officers can wear sweat pants or gym clothes to work. Last year, a few people got drunk during a Bday/sales company party in the office and one person got so drunk she got into a car accident and was terminated the next day. Don’t get me started on the processing department. Management is a bully and has her favorites. Processors quit constantly.
If you want to make a lot of money you do not have to work at this company. They had an accounting error a few months back where they over paid LO’s and they expected employees to pay them back immediately or else. This place is a joke. This company has one of the lowest commission tiers in the market. You can be a successful LO at another company SLG is not unique nor does it have any competitive advantages. If you really want to find a new start in mortgage keep looking.
