Agricultural Loan Officer
Overview
Agriculture loan officers, or agricultural lenders, work to help farmers and rural citizens obtain funds needed to fund their operation, purchase property, and more.
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What responsibilities will I have?
- Seek lending relationships with existing customers
- Actively call on prospective borrowers
- Explain to customers the different types of loans and credit options that are available, as well as the terms of those services
- Develop and analyze all types of credit information
- Approve within delegated authority loan structures pricing and conditions on loan transactions
- Combine agricultural and business knowledge with an in-depth understanding of each customer’s current financial position in order to provide innovative and workable alternatives to solve problems the customer faces in their ongoing farming operations
- Ensure all files are maintained in a secure environment to protect borrowers’ data
- Participate in training as scheduled by the supervisor
- Evaluate the risk in loan transactions and assign a probability of default and loss given default
- Manage and grow existing loan portfolios
- Participate in community and industry events
- Prepare credit analysis on assigned portfolio directly or through the use of a credit analyst
What education and training is required?
Becoming an agricultural loan officer requires a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business, business, accounting or finance. A general understanding of agriculture is very valuable and desired.
To pursue a career as an agricultural loan officer:
The following high school courses are recommended: agricultural education, computer courses, accounting, economics, and personal finance.
Where can I work?
Agricultural loan officers most often work for banks, some of which are agricultural in nature.
Future Job Market / Outlook
The future outlook for an agricultural loan officer will be good over the next five years.
Suggested Professional Organizations and Associations
- American Agricultural Economics Association
- Local Chamber of Commerce
- American Bankers Association