Gov. Janet Napolitano signs mortgage-licensing bill

Gov. Janet Napolitano has signed a proposal to license loan originators, a measure strongly backed by Arizona real estate professionals, financial institutions and housing officials.

The Senate had passed the bill, 20-6, after a long battle by the bill's author, Sen. Jay Tibshraeny of Chandler, to bring the proposal up for a vote.

The Chandler Republican resorted to a parliamentary maneuver on June 25 to bypass his caucus, where the bill had languished for some time.

Democratic lawmakers had pressed for legislative action to address the housing crisis during a forum in the Executive Tower on June 3 and followed up with pleas on the Senate floor.

The appeal was backed by officials of the Arizona Department of Financial Institutions, the Department of Real Estate, the Department of Housing and the Attorney General's Office. Industry insiders, including appraisers and loan officers, also urged legislative action to address mortgage fraud and the soaring number of foreclosures that have hit the state.

Many of those who spoke during the June 3 forum pushed for the licensing of loan originators. But critics said they don't believe a piece of paper in the form of a license will stop somebody from committing fraud.

Citing studies, the Pew Charitable Trusts reported that one in every 18 homeowners in Arizona could face foreclosure primarily in the next two years because of their sub-prime related loan.

"You walk down your street and count 18 homes, for the next two years, one in 18 Arizona homeowners will be in foreclosure. That is significant," said State Real Estate Commissioner Sam Wercinski.

IndyMac to Sell 60 Branches

IndyMac Bancorp Inc., which on Monday said it would lay off 3,800 workers and stop accepting new loan submissions, has reached an agreement to sell more than 60 retail mortgage branches to Prospect Mortgage.

Under the deal, the branches will be rebranded as Prospect branches and approximately 750 employees will join the company, according to an internal e-mail sent to employees on Tuesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“This is a tremendous development for our organization,” said Prospect Chief Executive Mark Filler in the e-mail, which was provided to the Business Journal. “This transaction is proof that we are on our way to becoming the nation’s largest independent retail mortgage company.”

Prospect was started in 2006 and is backed by private equity fund Sterling Partners.

Executives at Pasadena-based IndyMac had been working since last week with Prospect in an effort to pull off a deal. On Monday, IndyMac Chief Executive Michael Perry said in a letter to stakeholders that the company would stop taking most loan applications and close its roughly 150 branches.

Through the deal, 750 employees who on Monday were told they would be laid off will keep their jobs under Prospect’s management, said IndyMac spokesman Evan Wagner.

“We wanted to mitigate our own losses and we wanted to find them a home,” Wagner said of the deal.

Additionally, IndyMac will continue to originate loans “without interruption,” the company said in a separate e-mail to IndyMac employees.

“Between now and the time that that (the deal closes), our retail sales force is still going to be doing business under our brand,” Wagner said. “Whatever loans they originate, they’ll go through our systems, but Prospect will fund them.”

Separately, analyst Paul Miller of Friedman Billings Ramsey & Co. lowered his target price for the company’s stock from $1 to zero on Tuesday. Miller said he does not expect the company to go under, but he wrote in a research report, “We do not believe that there is any value left for common shareholders.”

Shares of IndyMac closed up 4 percent to 46 cents in after-hours trading after plunging 38 percent in the regular session.

About Prospect Mortgage

Prospect Mortgage

Established in 2006, Prospect Mortgage specializes in acquiring midsized residential lenders, providing them with capital, cost-efficiencies, and increased resources while maintaining a decentralized, entrepreneurial business model. Prospect is backed by Sterling Partners, a multibillion-dollar private equity fund based in Chicago and Baltimore. To learn more, visit www.prospectmtg.com.

Some products may not be available in all states. This is not a commitment to lend. Restrictions apply. All rights reserved. Users of this information should not assume that it remains effective at a later date. Programs (including, without limits, fees, rates, and features) are subject to change without notice.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives and future performance. Forward-looking statements, which may be based upon beliefs, expectations and assumptions of management and on information currently available to management, are generally identifiable by the use of words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “intend,” “estimate,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “could,” “should” or other similar expressions. Additionally, all statements in this document, including forward-looking statements, speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any statement in light of new information or future events. A number of factors, many of which are beyond the ability of the Company to control or predict, could cause actual results to differ materially from those in its forward-looking statements, including, among others, changes in demand for mortgage loans, the Company’s access to funding sources and the terms upon which it can obtain financing, the impact of economic slowdowns or recessions, management’s ability to manage the Company’s growth and planned expansion, competition in the Company’s market, changes in government regulations, the impact of new legislation or court decisions restricting the activities of lenders or suppliers of credit in the Company’s market and the inability of the Company to manage the risks associated with the foregoing as well as anticipated. These risks and uncertainties should be considered in evaluating forward-looking statements and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. The Company does not undertake to up-date forward looking statements to reflect the impact of circumstances or events that arise after the date the forward looking statement are made.

IndyMac Bancorp to be Prospect Mortgage

Prospect Mortgage has signed an agreement to acquire the majority of IndyMac Bancorp’s retail mortgage branches. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The transaction encompasses approximately 750 employees along with more than 60 branch offices which will be rebranded as Prospect Mortgage. John Johnston and Ron Bergum will remain in leadership roles with the retail branch group and report to Mark Filler, CEO of Prospect Mortgage.

“The IndyMac transaction benefits our loan officers, customers, sales managers and referral sources. This is growth for the right reasons, not just for the sake of growth,” said Mr. Filler. “The IndyMac transaction will enable us to increase our investment and success in marketing, technology, and customer service levels.”

With completion of the IndyMac transaction, Prospect Mortgage projects that it will become one of the largest independent retail mortgage companies in the country.

Have a great 4th of July!

ARMLS SWITCHES TO FLEXMLS JULY 28TH

ARMLS SWITCHES TO FLEXMLS JULY 28TH

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More and more foreclosures in Arizona

Every week there seems to be more and more homes being foreclosed on here in Arizona. This is a sad situation for many and a HUGE boom for those who are wanting to get a home for cheap!

Each home is different of course, however the chance is there to get a great deal!

I do not see a so called "bottom" any time soon. The banks are taking forever to respond to offers and many times letting the home(s) get foreclosed on. This is a tough time for all of us given the rise of gasoline, food and other everyday needs. I wish these banks would look at offers and say yes or no in a reasonable amount of time but they don't.

Keep looking for those great property steals because they are everywhere in AZ.

Have a great day!