Retail Lender
A lender that originates loans directly to borrowers through its own loan officers, branches, and call centers.
Retail lenders take applications, underwrite, fund, and often service their own loans. Big banks, credit unions, and direct mortgage lenders all operate retail channels. The borrower works with a loan originator employed by the lending institution directly.
Retail tends to offer the most integrated experience, one team, one set of systems, end-to-end. The trade-off is that you're constrained to that lender's product menu and pricing on any given day.
Compared to mortgage brokers (who shop wholesale lenders) and correspondent lenders (who originate using their own money but then sell to investors), retail is the simplest path. Many borrowers benefit from getting quotes from both channels to see which has the better fit for their scenario.
Related terms
Other terms you'll see alongside Retail Lender
A licensed professional who shops a borrower's loan application across multiple wholesale lenders rather than originating directly.
The licensed individual who takes a borrower's loan application and represents them through the mortgage process.
The channel through which lenders fund loans originated by independent mortgage brokers rather than their own retail loan officers.
The standardized three-page disclosure a lender must provide within three business days of a complete loan application.
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