'I Love My Job': Turning a Family Business Into a 13-Year Career Helping Others Find Homes

Welcome to I Love My Job, the series where we hear from women who really love their jobs. In this edition, we sat down with Zelma Banuelos, a mortgage loan officer at Zillow Home Loans.

Zelma's path into the mortgage industry started close to home — literally. While in college, she watched her mother, a successful real estate broker, struggle to find lenders she could trust to take good care of her clients. So Zelma got licensed herself, originally just to help her mom's Spanish-speaking clientele navigate the homebuying process. Thirteen years later, she's still doing the work she fell in love with, now as part of the Zillow Home Loans team.

For Zelma, the job has never really felt transactional. She credits Zillow's collaborative culture, its investment in professional development — especially for women — and its embrace of AI and technology with making her feel supported in an industry where, as she puts it, "there's not a lot of us."

In the video below, Zelma shares more about her path into mortgage, a recent client closing that stuck with her, how Zillow's culture and tools set it apart, and the advice she'd give to other women considering a career in finance. We also provide lightly edited highlights from the conversation in the article below.

Tell us your name, your role, and what your path to becoming a mortgage loan officer looked like. Was this always the plan?

My name is Zelma Banuelos, and I'm a mortgage loan officer here at Zillow Home Loans. My path was a little unconventional — it was really the family business. When I was in college, my mom was a real estate broker. She was having such a difficult time with finding good lenders that she could trust with her clients. Back in the day, the rules were totally different for mortgage loan officers, and I think they were just bringing back the licensing requirements. So I ended up getting my mortgage license to help her clients navigate the home ownership paths.

A lot of her clients were Hispanic. Being Spanish-speaking really allowed me to help more people than I would've ever thought possible to get into home ownership. And that's kind of how I ended up in this mortgage field.

I wouldn't say this is what I aimed to do at such a young age, but I really saw the impact it had on many people trying to achieve the American dream of home ownership. I was very content and happy that I was able to be a part of that path for them.

Thirteen years later, I ended up here at Zillow, and I've been so grateful for the opportunity to be here. I really enjoy the work that I do, especially helping people get into the biggest purchase of many of their lives.

Walk us through a recent client interaction that stuck with you — what made it memorable, and what did it remind you about why you do this work?

I most recently got to close a transaction on a client who was super special to me. I ended up walking her through the home-ownership process. I got her connected over to one of our amazing Zillow Premier partners to help her locate the home that was possible and ended up being what is going to be her forever home. She was looking for a retirement property after 25 years of renting. So I took a lot of special care in making sure that she was going to get into a mortgage that was going to be manageable for her, especially given her limited assets and income.

She was so sweet to work with, and honestly, it felt like I was taking care of my own grandmother. When you take care of family like that, you understand how special it is to walk someone through home ownership.

I'm just so proud of all her accomplishments, and I hope that she's going to be so happy in that forever home that she ended up purchasing with us here at Zillow Home Loans.

Mortgages can feel transactional from the outside. How would you describe the culture at Zillow to someone who assumes it's just a numbers game?

I think one of the things that stands out the most about working here at Zillow Home Loans is how positive and collaborative the culture is.

Even though you have your metrics to hit, I know that I have access to not just my managers, but other managers who are always available and, honestly, one Slack message away from answering any questions that you may have about programs. I also have peers who are really accessible to me, especially when we're learning all these new AI products that Zillow gives us access to.

Knowing that everyone wants to see you succeed and is always willing to help you gain a better understanding of the programs and products available to you is super important.

What does Zillow do differently in the mortgage space that you didn't see at previous companies — or that you wish existed before you got here?

I think one of the greatest things about being a mortgage loan officer for a tech company like Zillow is that we have access to all the advancements in technology and, really, are probably one of the only lenders out there, currently, that's really leveraging AI.

That is one thing that lacked in other companies that I had been at. I've been doing this for 13 years. So I have a lot of experience dealing with different systems. It just felt really flat and outdated. Being here at Zillow, [AI] cuts down the time [and] really helps us get our clients into home ownership a lot quicker. It makes the processes a lot more streamlined.

We also pride ourselves on being very transparent within the home-buying process. At the end of the day, this is one of the biggest financial transactions that our clients deal with.

People are making one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives. How does Zillow support YOU so you can show up for them?

A home purchase is going to be a very emotional experience, especially dealing with buyers all over the United States. Our customers are our North Star — and we make sure our emphasis is on making sure the process is super seamless and that they have a very great customer-service experience. Being at Zillow, the environment is just super collaborative. Everyone wants to see you succeed.

What would you tell a woman in her finance or mortgage career who's trying to figure out if this path is right for her?

If you're someone in finance or in the mortgage industry and you're looking for your next move, I think Zillow is a wonderful company to work for. I think here, especially being a woman in this industry, I feel very valued and supported.

There's a lot of room for growth and development within some of the programs that are offered here at Zillow, especially being a woman in this finance industry. There's not a lot of us here. So it is a journey, and I think that it's important to feel valued and supported at whatever company that you choose to work for.

What do you want someone watching this to walk away knowing, feeling, or doing?

I want people to know that Zillow really emphasizes and promotes diversity within its workforce. There is a lot of opportunity for personal and professional growth.

If you're anything like me, or if your background is at all similar to my mortgage journey, then I highly encourage you to take the leap and to sign up for our job boards to see if there's any opportunity that fits within your skillset.

I really encourage you to see if there are any opportunities available for you if you're with us here at Zillow.

Interested in joining the Zillow team? They’re hiring! Click the link below to browse opportunities.

Fairygodboss is proud to work with Zillow. Find a job there today!

Check out other posts in the ‘I Love My Job’ series:

• ‘I Love My Job’: 31 Years of Personal and Professional Growth Opportunities at My Dream Company
• ‘I Love My Job’: From a Chance Encounter to a Cybersecurity Manager at a People-Centric Company
• ‘I Love My Job’: A ‘Winning Culture’ Where We Win Together as a Supportive and Flexible Team
• ‘I Love My Job’: I Grew Into a Director Role & Now Help Other Leaders Unlock Their Full Potential
• ‘I Love My Job’: A Team of Collaborative Tinkerers Who Are Free to Explore and Innovate