A California mortgage brokerage has agreed to settle a lawsuit over claims it violated the controversial “All-In Initiative” imposed by United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM).
Mid Valley Funding & Investment Inc. (MVF) has agreed to pay $40,000 to settle the lawsuit, according to a UWM spokesperson. The nation’s largest lender had sought $310,000 in damages, as well as other compensatory damages, attorney fees, court costs, and other expenses.
Terms of the settlement, reached Monday, were not disclosed. The settlement agreement has not yet been posted to the website of the federal court in Detroit where the lawsuit was filed.
Neither MVF officials nor their attorney responded to requests for comment.
According to the lawsuit, filed in February 2022, MVF is an independent mortgage brokerage that signed a wholesale broker agreement with UWM in June 2015.
The complaint states UWM announced its so-called “All-In Initiative” on March 4, 2021, saying “it had decided to end its business relationship with broker partners who chose to continue originating loans with select retail lenders specified in the agreement” — specifically, Rocket Mortgage and Fairway Independent Mortgage.
UWM’s lawsuit claims MVF agreed to the “All-In Addendum in April 2021” but subsequently violated the agreement by submitting “at least 62 mortgage loans” to the banned lenders.
Nicole Roberts, a spokesperson for UWM, confirmed the settlement amount and said the money from this and “any future settlements” will be used to support “FindAMortgageBroker.com for the sole benefit of helping educate consumers that the best way to get a mortgage is through an independent mortgage broker and to help support the mortgage broker community overall.”
Roberts also provided a statement from UWM President and CEO Mat Ishbia.
“It’s very unfortunate to see a company like Mid Valley breach their contract,” Ishbia said, “but we’re going to continue to do what’s right for the broker community and I’m glad that this money is going to be dedicated to growing the broker channel through findamortgagebroker.com."
UWM filed a similar lawsuit in February 2022 against America’s MoneyLine (AML), alleging the high-volume, California-based brokerage owes it $2.8 million after repeatedly violating the “All-In Initiative.” AML later filed a counter-lawsuit against UWM.
