Guild Mortgage Sets Records in Second Quarter and First Half In Total Lending, Purchase Loans and Servicing
Mountain West, Northwest, Southeast and Texas Regions Lead Growth; Western States See Continued Growth, Largest Increases in Average Loan Amounts
SAN DIEGO – Guild Mortgage, one of the largest mortgage lenders in the U.S., continued setting records in lending and servicing during the second quarter and first half of 2018, with growth occurring in several markets across the U.S.
Total volume for the quarter ended June 30, 2018 reached $4.89 billion, up 15.3 percent from $4.23 billion in the second quarter of 2017, and topped the previous record of $4.39 billion in the third quarter of 2017. Purchase loans reached $4.24 billion in the second quarter of 2018, up 19.9 percent from $3.54 billion in the same period last year. Purchase loans represented 87.7 percent of all loans in the second quarter of 2018, up 3.9 percent from 83.8 percent in the 2017 period.
Guild outpaced the industry during the first half. According to the latest estimates from Fannie Mae, industry-wide origination volume in the first half of 2018 was 5.6 percent lower than the first half of 2017. Purchase transactions accounted for 71 percent of loans closed in June, according to Ellie Mae, up from 68 percent a year ago and 70 percent in May.
Mary Ann McGarry, president and CEO, said Guild is growing from its base in the West into new regions added in recent years in Texas, the Southeast and the Midwest, driven by a company-wide entrepreneurial spirit.
“We are finding more ways to serve homebuyers,” said McGarry. “Our customer-service culture means offering a wider array of loan options than ever before and taking extra time to find what’s right for each customer. Processing is enhanced through our MyMortgage digital platform and other high-tech, high-touch services. These approaches are helping us grow market share in new communities and in our traditional markets and attract new talent to support future growth.”
The strong second quarter resulted in Guild achieving record total volume for the first half of 2018 – $8.34 billion, up 14.7 percent from $7.27 billion in the 2017 period. Purchase loans for the first half of 2018 reached $7.0 billion, up 18.8 percent from $5.9 billion, and represented 84.1 percent of all loans, up 3.5 percent from 81.3 percent in the first half of 2017.
Guild refinance business totaled $626.8 million in the second quarter of 2018, down 8.4 percent from $684.5 million in the 2017 quarter. First half refinance business was $1.3 billion in the 2018 period, down 3.2 percent from $1.36 billion in the previous year period.
The average loan size during the first six months of 2018 reached $236,617, up 3.9 percent from $227,837 in the first half of 2017.
Servicing volume reached a record $42.8 billion in the second quarter of 2018, up 25.3 percent from $34.1 billion in the 2017 quarter. Average loan size in the servicing portfolio in the 2018 period was $205,394, up 3.9 percent from $197,698 in 2017.
The Mountain West region (Utah, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona) recorded the largest loan volume of Guild’s nine regions at $2.0 billion, up 24.2 percent from the first six months of 2017. The Northwest region (Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming) recorded $1.65 billion in loans during the first half of 2018, up 24 percent. The Texas 2 region (includes Arkansas, Louisiana and branches added in 2016 with the acquisition of AmeriPro, of Austin) grew 24 percent from the previous year period to $332 million.
Other regions and their totals and growth rates were: Oregon, $984 million, up 1.9 percent; Northern California, $739 million, up 8.4 percent; Southeast (North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee), $687 million, up 13.7 percent; Southern California, $625 million, down 12.2 percent; Texas, $530 million, up 5.8 percent; and the new Midwest region, $239 million in its first reporting period following the acquisition of Cornerstone Mortgage, based in St. Louis, earlier this year. The Midwest includes Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, North Dakota, Nebraska and Illinois.
Top average loan sizes in the regions for the first half of 2018 were: Northern California, $303,367, up 8.9 percent; Southern California, $290,576, up 3.9 percent; Oregon, $278,789, up 2.4 percent; Northwest, $269,807, up 10.1 percent; Mountain, $233,699, up 5.4 percent; Texas 2, $210,281, down 0.2 percent; Midwest, $184,894 (new region); Southeast, $177,077, up 1.3 percent; and Texas, $174,892, unchanged.
Fastest-growing states among the largest 10 served by Guild during the first half of 2018 were:
Arizona, $518 million, up 41.2 percent; Idaho, $324 million, up 33.1 percent; Colorado, $676 million, up 31 percent; Washington, $1.38 billion, up 19.9 percent; Texas, $817 million, up 13.4 percent; South Carolina, $339 million, up 13.2 percent; and Nevada, $657 million, up 12.8 percent.
Hawaii recorded the highest average loan size in the first half, at $417,269, up 3.2 percent from the first six months of 2017. Among the mainland states, top average loan sizes were: California, $311,989; Washington, $300,074; and Oregon, $283,243. Lowest averages: South Carolina, $172,072; Missouri, $179,281; and Texas, $191,491.
A top-10 national lender by purchase loan volume, Guild offers first-time homebuyers a wide range of loan options and personalized service. Its loan professionals can serve the needs of any homebuyer, from helping first-time homebuyers achieve homeownership, often through government loan programs, to homebuyers looking to upgrade with a jumbo loan. Guild also specializes in helping active duty and retired military personnel to secure VA loans, with 100 percent financing and flexible qualifying standards. The company is consistently recognized for its impact in the communities it serves, commitment to customer service, strength in regulatory compliance and workplace culture.