loan officer

closer

administrative assistant

software engineer

junior loan officer

CMG Financial

The work experience will vary depending on which location you work at and what position you are filling. Some branches are comprised of very talented and quality loan officers which makes the work very streamlined and not as stressful, whereas other branches are filled with loan officers who struggle and bring in difficult borrowers. Anyone who has spent time in the mortgage industry is familiar with this. The clean and strong loans go through the pipeline smoothly, the crummy loans are plagued with issues and the pressure to make them work and close on time is high and stressful. If you are new to the industry and have anxiety problems this might not be a good match for you.

Management was typically kind and well-meaning, but the company often does not authorize overtime yet still expects hourly employees like processors and assistants to work late off the clock to meet the expectations of the branches they support. PTO is accrued with each paycheck and CMG does not have a Use-it-or-lose-it policy, meaning if you have saved up your time off it will roll over to the next year. Any unused PTO hours will be paid out when you leave the company. Loan officers generally work on site at their local branches. Processors and underwriters usually have the option to work remotely, depending on which locations they support. Company has a strong camaraderie between the employees, and even has an internal social media platform where employees can post and thank each other and even award points to their coworkers which can then be redeemed to receive company-branded items ranging from coffee mugs and hats to fancy jackets and even AirPods.

CMG has some of the usual issues that are common in the industry but it does try to remain open and friendly. One thing that I did not care for is that during times of heightened business they hire a bunch of people only to start laying off employees once things die down. Usually the first employees to be cut from the roster are the assistants, followed by the processors.

A typical day in the Wholesale Underwriting Department included underwriter and manager crying and stressed out.  Worked Monday-Friday, evenings, weekends and holidays approximately 70 hours a week.  Constant change to guidelines.  Processors not given authority to clear simple housekeeping conditions falling on the undwerwriters to process and clear.  Common for management to send out email regarding guidelines and then recant them.  Common to touch a file 5-7 times to clear PTD conditions making it very difficulty to make brokers happy.  Ultimately, borrowers dissatisfied with refinance and or purchase.  Also, made it very difficult to make bonus in underwriting due to far too many touches per file. 

San Ramon, CA is the headquarters for this company and has several branches nationwide.  This company grew very fast in the last two years.  Within the last year key managers quit and moved on.  Some were not replaced for months.  Underwriting training is according to CMG ways rather than industry standards and left to employee to figure it out and get it done to stay within Service Level Agreements. 
 
CMG has no outside subject matter experts training their underwriters.  Common for loan approval to change due to guideline interpretation incorrectly conditioned or communicated by management.  

Corporate Management out of touch with day to day operations.  They have great ideals for what the company wants to be, however, miss the mark in application of ideals applied to day to day operations/training/ management of processors and underwriters.  Experience Extraordinary is their tag line and falls short for their employees.   

CMG Financial is a hard place to work.  Surprising when considering they received Best Places to Work in the Bay Area.

I have been in the mortgage industry for over 20 years and have worked at several companies, including retail, correspondent and brokers. This company's culture is unlike anything I have seen before. They truly care about their employees and customers. I've heard so many stories about how the company went above and beyond to help with employees who were dealing with difficult situations in their personal lives. It isn't just about making money. They seem to genuinely want what's best for their borrowers. Everyone I have met here have great attitudes and are willing to help in any way they can. Your emails and phone calls will be answered promptly regardless of the department. This is a very high stress industry and I feel CMG offsets that with flexibilities like working from home, matching 401k, discounts and gyms and retail etc. I feel I am noticed when I do a great job and coached when I have areas to improve. Most of all I love the team I work with. They are always positive and fun, my manager never micro manages. We all work well together. I'm happy to be here. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
They give nice employee gifts when they give them. Pay is good

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
A lot of  nepotism. If you are not a part of the clique or one of them they will get rid of you.  Loan officers are very disrespectful and management allows it.  If you don’t adjust to how they want you to whether it is right or wrong, illegal or legal they will replace you with someone who will. No raises. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Nepotism nepotism nepotism!! They do not like “different”

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Work is up and down. One minute you are very busy the next you are twiddling your thumbs and wondering why.  It is because they don’t like you so they stop giving you loans and give them to their relatives and friends. Non-American customer loans are taken through a fine tooth comb and some.  American loans they allow pretty much everything. Decisions are made on personal conscience and not procedures. Procedures are at their discretion.

My day included greeting clients, phones, keeping and supplying the kitchen and responsible for all equipment and office supplies.  Mail included distribution and sending overnight packages.  Sometimes I assisted individual loan officers in special marketing projects.  Made sure that all licenses were displayed and current.

The workplace was extremely pleasant and fun with great management and great co-workers....a family type atmosphere. I had the ability to take 9 or more financial classes (required) per year for my position which kept me abreast of financial institution laws and methods of operation.  That was a great learning experience.

In my first year at this office, there were many personality clashes and management problems.  Once those were solved with new staff, there was nothing difficult about this job.  It was a relaxed pace with great people to work with and the ability to help whoever needed it.  The atmosphere was the most enjoyable part of the job..

What is the best part of working at the company?
no room for advancement, treat you horribly, too many “managers” reporting to managers and wayyyy too much nepotism 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
having too much work and not enough time in the day and no OT 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
family like— but in the worst way because of the nepotism. As long as the related employees are taken care of that’s all that matters.  Everyone else gets treated like garbage 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
log in, get yelled at by demanding Loan Officers, get approval to do something and then a different manager says no to what was approved.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Staying busy is not an issue. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Not having work to do or a stable position 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Mixed and challenging, but it’s part of life. You will be different to people and they will be different to you. With that being said don’t be discouraged just keep your head up and keep pushing forward to greatness. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
my goal at work is to stay busy be a team player help where help is needed. Learn new things come up with new ideas. Be asset to the company.  Utilize my skills and training and have the companies best interest at heart

Typical day would be: 

Job entails but not limited to: ordering of appraisals, 4506-Ts, SSN, MERS, USPS, rapid rescores, title, HOI, VOEs, UDM, Make sure we have all the correct documents for submission to the underwriter.  Responsible for the conditions to be met in a timely matter.   Calling and emailing the borrower to make sure they are gathering the conditions.  Following up with the Realtors, to keep them updated.  Once docs are at title, following up with title, setting the signing date and time and following with title again to make sure they have all their funding conditions ready.  Plus whatever the loan officer wants me to do.

My manager that hired me at CMG allowed me to learn so many new programs.  I learned bond and DPA loans, trained for and underwrote FHA loans, learned all MI types, and more.   I loved the diverse type of loans I was able to underwrite with CMG.  I was even able to build relationships with great people at our MI Companies.  Our vendors were outstanding as well.

Conventional and government underwriters weren't separated like in many large companies.  All underwriters were accessible for questions.  We all helped each other when needed.  It was a flexible working environment.  You chose your work schedule, and got your work done.

The company was certainly experiencing growing pains, especially in Texas. 

The corporate leadership seemed engaged and professional, but there were too many levels of management and local leadership was unimpressive. 

The compensation for sales is great compared to local competitors, but this was countered by underpaid support staff and challenges acquiring good support talent. 

Real Estate is hot in the area where I worked so the business is there for the taking. In exchange for the higher compensation plans for sales be prepared to bear more of the responsibility for each deal.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Loan officer 2 salaries reported	$31,550 per year
Closer 3 salaries reported	$21.67 per hour
Administrative assistant 1 salary reported	$21.25 per hour
Software engineer 2 salaries reported	$108,139 per year
Junior loan officer 2 salaries reported	$72,234 per year

Working at CMG Financial: Company Overview and Reviews

CMG Financial

CMG Financial Ratings

Popular jobs at CMG Financial

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected