Lending Officers facilitate commercial, consumer or mortgage lending by seeking potential clients and helping them apply for loans. Lending Officers gather information about clients and businesses to ensure the quality of the loan and the probability of repayment. Commercial or business loans help companies pay for new equipment or expand operations; consumer loans include home equity, automobile and personal loans; mortgage loans help purchase real estate or refinance an existing mortgage. Lending Officers assist clients through the process of applying for a loan. 

After a client completes the application, the Lending Officers analyzes and verifies the client's creditworthiness. Often, Lending Officers can quickly access the client's credit history by computer and obtain a credit "score." Lending officers who specialize in evaluating a client's creditworthiness - often called loan underwriters - may conduct a financial analysis or other risk assessment. Loan officers include this information and their written comments in a loan file, which is used to analyze whether the prospective loan meets the lending institution's requirements. Lending Officers then decide, in consultation with their managers, whether to grant the loan. If the loan is approved, a repayment schedule is arranged with the client.

Lending Officers contact borrowers with delinquent loan accounts to help them find a method of repayment to avoid their defaulting on the loan. If a repayment plan cannot be developed, the Lending Officers initiates collateral liquidation, in which the collateral used to secure the loan - a home or car, for example - is seized by the lender and sold to repay the loan. Working as Lending Officers  usually involves considerable travel. Most loan officers and counselors work a standard 40-hour week, but many work longer, depending on the number of clients and the demand for loans. Loan officers are especially busy when interest rates are low.