August wholesale results are in, and as we’ve seen in past months, Retail/Direct lending in the reverse mortgage market continues to lead Wholesale/Broker volumes. Total volume for August was up 13%, with Retail/Direct up 18% and Wholesale/Broker up just 6%.
We asked last month why the volume recovery has been so narrow since May, primarily benefiting just 3 major lenders. As we discussed in last month’s report, July volumes were higher than May for only 5 of the top 10 lenders. This month, we find 7 a broader recovery with 7 of the top 10 seeing volume growth since the industry’s low point in May. Even more encouraging, the largest lender in our business saw a nice 12 month high in August, moving back to 2,000 loans for the first time in 16 months (April 2009).
While that might be small comfort to anyone whose compensation isn’t tied to Wells Fargo’s performance this year, our industry can benefit from the success of large, visible brands as we’ve seen time and again over the years.
A few other lenders stand out in this month’s report:
- Genworth continues their healthy recovery from May, with growth of 250% and their highest volume since September 2009
- Security One Lending appears to be on the comeback trail as well, also showing their highest volume since in 11 months
- The race is heating up for second place, with Metlife gaining ground on longtime industry leader Bank of America (and Seattle Mortgage previously). Metlife’s growing retail presence and continuing wholesale strength puts them within shouting distance for number 2 overall. BofA leads by over 3,000 loans for the last 12 months, but if both lenders turn in identical totals in September Metlife would still shrink the gap by 24%.
Be sure to click the link below to access the full report:
