I got the work-at-home bug myself as a telecommuting pioneer for my then-employer, one of the country’s largest banks when I went from my native New York City to Southern California back in 1993. Once I stayed around for one big banking merger too many, I was left searching for something new to do that was still home-based, but actually let me earn a living.

It’s taken me a few years to perfect the winning combination of what I do, as I believe that successful self-employment is doing a few things that together, get you to your desired income level. One of the many hats I wear is that of a Mortgage Consultant. It’s a lucrative, flexible, home-based business where a dedicated first-year sales professional can make $50-$100K.

Now mind you, I was a traditional Loan Officer before, earlier in my self-employed life for over three years. But that business model left me burnt out and swearing I’d never do loans again. Then a new spin on the industry came my way, and it’s one that I think more work-at-home professionals should be aware of. The Virtual Loan Officer.

Not all Virtual Loan Officer situations are created equal. I’ve investigated several companies thoroughly over the last year, and here’s what I believe is ideal in a company you would seek to work with:

1. A thorough ongoing training and coaching program.

2. Mentors that are easily available and will gladly answer your questions.

3. An opportunity for you to participate in the mortgage industry right away without having to have a huge amount of knowledge.

4. The ability to do both residential and commercial loans of all credit grades nationwide.

5. They are a mortgage banker rather than a mortgage broker (a banker can do direct funding of loans, a broker never actually has money to lend).

6. They have back office staff to handle the “grunt work”, paper-chasing, aspects of loan deals, so that you can focus on sales, prospecting and customer service to have higher sales volume and make more money.

7. The ability to do business nationwide legally with proper compliance and the highest ethics.

8. Full-time and part-time work-at-home options.

9. An opportunity for you to grow into management roles for additional career growth and income.

10. Minimal start-up cost.

So in summary, it is definitely possible to make professional-level income, legitimately working from home with the flexible work-life balance that means everything to you. And I believe being a Virtual Loan Officer is one of the best ways.

Copyright 2006 Melanie R. Jordan E-Publishing

About the Author:

Melanie Jordan is a Mortgage Consultant and runs a Loan Sales Mentorship Program that helps work-at-home professionals get started and excel in the mortgage industry, and learn to build and manage their own loan sales teams to earn residual income http://www.MakeMoneyInLoans.com.

Source: www.isnare.com