Lakeview Loan Servicing remained the largest player in the agency servicing market at the end of the first quarter, but the industry’s biggest-ever servicer is in the wings. (Includes two data tables.)

The stock market is volatile and interest rates are rising. Dozens of mortgage company owners are pondering their options.

Origination giant Rocket is purchasing servicing behemoth Mr. Cooper at a premium. The biggest risk for Rocket is that mortgage rates might finally decline markedly in the coming quarters. Or is that an advantage?

Is Onity Group eyeing a sale? Perhaps. And why not? Servicing values are approaching a 25-year high.

One bidder recently agreed to pay north of 6.25 times the servicing fee for a high dollar volume of agency MSR. Sound crazy? Maybe, but servicing prices are at a 25-year high for low-coupon product.

Loans in Ginnie Mae MBS accounted for 17.7% of total single-family mortgage servicing outstanding as of the end of 2024, up from a 17.0% share at the end of 2023. Nonbanks continue to gain share.

There’s a new market leader in the subservicing arena: Mr. Cooper. But with the OCC ready to lift sanctions against number-two-ranked Cenlar, a dog fight could be ahead.

A few months back, Marlin Mortgage parted ways with COO Steve Stone. Now, describing himself as a whistleblower, Stone is suing the MSR owner, accusing the firm of a host of questionable moves.

Market indicators suggest the Federal Reserve could cut rates three times this year while the MBA anticipates only one rate cut. A REIT that invests in agency MBS and servicing is shunning MSR for the moment.

The Mortgage Bankers Association defended servicers from criticism for the financial incentives they receive from FHA home-retention programs, arguing that the work involved outweighed the compensation.