In preparation for a housing recovery, JPMorgan Chase &Â Co. is recruiting more than a thousand mortgage originators in nearly two dozen states.
By the end of 2010, the lender plans to hire 1,200 mortgage loan officers, a news release today said.
The additions will boost the company’s sales force by 60 percent — suggesting it currently has around 2,000 loan originators. Chase reported company-wide headcount at 220,861 as of Sept. 30.
The originators will operate out of bank branches in 23 states including California, Florida and Illinois as well as New York and Texas. They will also be deployed to new markets where Chase doesn’t have a branch presence including Boston, St. Louis and Washington D.C.
Dave Lowman, head of Chase’s home lending, noted a number of strategic investments the company has made in preparation for an eventual revival of housing markets.
“We have invested in new systems, aggressively grown our capacity and now are looking to increase our sales force,” Lowman said in the statement. “With nearly 5,200 bank branches — one of the largest networks in the country — we need to ensure each branch has seasoned mortgage professionals to help meet the needs of their communities and is well positioned when the housing market fully recovers.”
The New York-based institution indicated that than half of the nation’s real estate offices are within five miles of a Chase branch.
With $37.6 billion in third-quarter originations, Chase was the third-biggest lender behind Bank of America Corp., which announced $98.4 billion in home loan fundings, and Wells Fargo &Â Co., which reported $96.0 billion in production.
