Time to REIT-up for United Wholesale Mortgage? Not really, company management said recently. Just two A-paper nonbank lender/servicers — Freedom Mortgage and PennyMac — have jumped into the REIT pond, with different growth outcomes.
Changes could be underway in the subservicing sector. Number-one ranked Cenlar soon may be out from under OCC regulatory sanctions, while Select Portfolio Servicing takes a second trip to the auction block. (Includes data table.)
During refinance booms, loan officers can be worth their weight in gold but during a downturn LO costs need to be adjusted. That reckoning may be underway now.
A few years back, Better looked like a sure thing: It boasted state-of-the art origination technology. Today, the nonbank is bleeding red ink and dependent on a convertible note held by a Japanese multinational.
Investors are seeing value in the unsecured notes of certain large nonbanks, increasing the ability of these shops to sell new debt. Not all lenders are responding, but new deals could be in the works as long as MSR keep rising in value.