Mortgage Sector Consolidating — M&A News from MortgageDaily.com
DALLAS, May 15 /PRNewswire/ Stung by lower profit margins at a time when rising rates have prompted prospective borrowers to shun new financing, mortgage bankers have cut back and consolidated, according to recent coverage at MortgageDaily.com, a dominant source of online news for the mortgage industry.
Among the biggest deals in the works, Wachovia Corp. announced it would acquire Golden West Financial Corp. The resulting mortgage giant is on track to originate more than $100 billion a year — making it a major mortgage player. Wachovia says the deal will make its brand available to more than half of Americans. (https://www.mortgagedaily.com/WachoviaGoldenWest050806.asp)
ACC Capital Holdings announced 3,800 people were terminated at its retail subsidiaries, including Ameriquest Mortgage Co. The layoffs are part of a new business model the Orange, Calif.-based lender has implemented — one that will help it operate better in today’s lending environment. Ameriquest will service customers from mortgage production centers in Arizona, California, Connecticut and Illinois. (https://www.mortgagedaily.com/LayoffsAmeriquest050206.asp)
The Washington Department of Financial Institutions wants to know the reasons behind Merit Financial’s move to recently fire most of its 410 employees, the department’s director told MortgageDaily.com. He said he does not know if the company will file for bankruptcy, though published reports out of Seattle have indicated that is a possibility. “They had staffing and marketing costs and no business coming in,” he said. (https://www.mortgagedaily.com/ClosureMerritt050906.asp)
Subprime mortgage lender Aames Investment Corp. announced there is a good chance it will be acquired this quarter. “The company currently believes that there is a significant probability that it will enter into a definitive agreement with one of the parties during the second quarter,” the Los Angeles-based real estate investment trust said — noting first quarter prices in the secondary market fell for lower FICO loans and second liens. (https://www.mortgagedaily.com/AamesSale051006.asp)
Read complete coverage of mergers, acquisitions and other corporate activity in real estate finance at https://www.mortgagedaily.com/Corporate.asp
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