Producing LOs grow their ranks in 2025: RETR

The mortgage industry recorded a modest increase in the number of producing loan officers in 2025 — the first annual rise since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to preliminary data from mortgage technology platform RETR.

The number of LOs who originated at least one mortgage in 2025 reached 221,161, up slightly from 220,449 in 2024.

“That’s the number of loan officers who were producing regardless of license status — we can see that more LOs did work in 2025 than in 2024,” Steven Wynands, co-founder of RETR, said in an interview with HousingWire.

Final figures will be confirmed once the license renewal grace period ends in February. But the early analysis suggests that more producing LOs were active at some point during 2025 compared with the prior year.

The LO population surged during the pandemic as historically low mortgage rates fueled refinance and purchase activity. At its peak, the producing LO workforce approached 290,000 as lenders rapidly expanded hiring to meet demand with interest rates in the 2% to 4% range.

That expansion was followed by widespread layoffs, bankruptcies, and mergers and acquisitions as rates rose sharply and origination volumes collapsed. The number of producing LOs steadily declined, hitting a post-pandemic low point in 2024. The recovery since then has been slow and uneven.

Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) data shows that three different sources — the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS) and the MBA’s own Quarterly Performance Report — indicate a consistent trend: Industry employment has stabilized in the past six quarters compared to the period of dramatic decline from 2021 to 2023.

“Loan originations are forecast to increase through 2027, which may also mean some modest pickup in mortgage industry employment,” the MBA stated.

Employment trends

​​LO employment trends varied sharply by company type in 2025. While banks, credit unions and mortgage brokerages showed signs of recovery last year, independent mortgage banks (IMBs) continued to shed sales staff.

Brokers posted the strongest growth, with their LO count rising 12.5% year over year to 56,803, although they remain the smallest LO component of the market.

Banks and credit unions increased their combined LO count by 5% to 89,389 in 2025. In contrast, IMBs and other lenders saw an 11.7% decline, falling to 74,969 LOs.

The number of real estate agents also continued to decline in 2025, falling 3% to 1,055,912, according to RETR.

“This is a time to stick around and double down on relationships, because it’s when things get better,” Wynands said. 

According to Wynands, improving sentiment is tied to greater mortgage rate stability.

“We’re now back at a point where the consensus is that we’re not going to 5% — we’re staying in the 6% range,” he said. “That’s shifting the borrower mentality back to, ‘Let’s get back to buying homes.'”