United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) has passed Quicken Loans to become the top-ranked non-bank purchase lender in America, according to a report by Inside Mortgage Finance.
UWM produced $11.2 billion in loan volume during the second quarter, with $8.3 billion of its business (74 percent) being attributed to new home purchases–compared to Quicken Loans, which purchase loans made up only 31.6 percent of its second quarter loan volume.
“This is a major accomplishment for us at UWM, and highlights the efforts of more than 2,700 team members here who are dedicated to helping our mortgage broker clients be the hero to their borrowers and the Realtors they work with,” said Mat Ishbia, President and Chief Executive Officer of UWM. “The high amount of purchases going through the Mortgage Broker channel reinforces that borrowers don’t want to communicate with a call center Loan Officer that is 1,000 miles away, or use an app that is more sizzle than substance. They prefer local, they want an expert, and they want the process to be fast and easy–and that’s what Mortgage Brokers provide.”
UWM’s overall loan volume through the midway point of 2018 is a 68 percent year-over-year increase compared to the six-month mark of 2017, which is by far the highest growth clip among any of the top 25 mortgage lenders overall in the country.
UWM’s ranking as the top non-bank purchase lender in America–and number two purchase lender overall behind Wells Fargo–is especially notable because the company is a wholesale lender. That means that UWM solely operates by working with Independent Mortgage Brokers throughout the country who take borrower applications, but then UWM underwrites, closes and funds the loan through its technology and partnership with brokers.
The overall top five purchase lenders in the second quarter were: 1) Wells Fargo ($15.4 billion); 2) UWM ($8.3 billion); 3) Bank of America ($7.9 billion); 4) JP Morgan Chase ($7.86 billion); and 5) Quicken Loans ($7.80 billion).
In May,
UWM launched the Web site FindAMortgageBroker.com to help people around the country who are interested in buying or refinancing a home find a local mortgage expert. Despite the B2B format, UWM’s impressive volume of loan closings accounts for roughly one of every three purchase loans closed by mortgage brokers, and about one of every 20 purchase loans, total, nationwide.
UWM also recently announced that it will be covering the costs of borrowers’ appraisals on all conventional loans originated by its brokers through the end of the year.
UWM forecasts year-end loan volume surpassing $40 billion, which would exceed the company’s all-time high mark of $29.5 billion (set in 2017) by 36 percent.
