While overall quarterly originations at Stearns Lending Inc. moved lower, loan volume from the company’s correspondent channel climbed.
Mortgage production from the period that started on July 1 and ended on Sept. 30 came to 25,931 loans funded for $6.578 billion.
That was according to data provided by the Santa Ana, California-based firm as part
of the Mortgage Daily Third Quarter 2015 Mortgage Origination Survey.
As has been the trend during the latest three-month period, business slowed from the second quarter, when 27,650 loans were closed for $7.073 billion.
Production picked up, however, from the third-quarter 2014, when Stearns generated 18,054 loan closings for $4.691 billion.
During the first three quarters of this year, mortgage originations amounted to 78,607 loans for $20.111 billion.
Third-quarter 2015 activity included $1.358 billion in retail originations and $2.945 billion in wholesale business.
Also included in the latest quarter’s production was $2.275 billion in correspondent acquisitions which, unlike retail and wholesale originations, was up from the second quarter, when correspondent activity came in at $1.992 billion.
As of the end of last month, Stearns serviced 122,950 loans for third parties at $26.539 billion.
The mortgage servicing portfolio contracted from
138,542 loans serviced for $30.431 billion as of June 30 and 125,911 mortgages for $29.038 billion as of Sept. 30, 2014.
Stearns finished the third-quarter 2015 with 1,835 people on its payroll.
Headcount was up from 1,803 employees three months earlier and
1,658 employees a year earlier.
