Although business slowed last year at United Guaranty Corp., the mortgage insurer still claims the biggest market share. Delinquency was down, and the book of business grew.
New first-lien insurance written came in at $10.733 billion during the final three months of last year, according to the fourth-quarter 2014 earnings report from the mortgage insurance company’s parent, American International Group Inc.
Business slowed compared to the prior period, when $12.643 billion in new insurance was written.
The was little change, however, from the final quarter of 2013, when insurance written totaled $10.752 billion.
For all of last year, insurance written amounted to $42.038 billion, falling from $49.356 billion in 2013.
“United Guaranty Corp. is the No. 1 mortgage insurance company in terms of traditional new insurance written for the fourth year in a row,” a statement Monday said. “In addition to recording the most new insurance written for 2014, United Guaranty continues to lead the M.I. industry with unparalleled customer service, including providing 24-hour turnaround on more than 98 percent of full-file submissions during 2014.”
Full-year 2014 full-file submissions exceeded 120,000, and United Guaranty reports that it completed 98 percent of those submissions within 24 hours.
The Greensboro, N.C.-based company finished the year with 867,120 policies in force for $167.180 billion.
United Guaranty’s book of business grew from 850,578 policies for $162.533 billion as of Sept. 30, 2014.
As of Dec. 31, 2014, there were 799,573 policies in force for $147.612 billion.
The 60-day delinquency rate fell to 4.4 percent from 4.6 percent as of Sept. 30
and 5.9 percent as of Dec. 31, 2013.
The mortgage insurer’s pre-tax operating income rose to $171 million from $135 million three months earlier and $48 million twelve months earlier.
At parent AIG, income from continuing operations before income tax expense plunged to $0.7 billion from $3.0 billion in the third quarter and $2.2 billion in the fourth-quarter 2013.
