Hello, brokers and LOs!
Deadline day has come and gone. So who won the Great Broker War of 2021?
Rocket Mortgage says they did. UWM says no, we did. I think that more or less summarizes the past week.
In a statement issued on Tuesday morning, UWM announced that more than 10,000 broker shops in America are "all in" and won't work with Rocket and Fairway. UWM said it included "many of the largest independent broker shops" in the country.
"I've received hundreds of calls and emails from mortgage brokers across the country and have been blown away at the positive response we've received, along with the sheer number of shops who have locked arms with us because they felt it was the right thing to do," Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of UWM, said in the statement. "We're going to be able to look back at this as a pivotal moment that helped catapult independent mortgage brokers' growth."
There are, as you might have guessed, two sides to the story. Multiple sources told me that many of Rocket's top broker shops did not sign the addendum, including Thuan Nguyen's hugely successful Loan Factory, California-based firms Lemonbrew, Preferred Financial Group and LoanMonkey, as well as Charlotte-based LoanPronto.
Rocket said on Tuesday that 22 of its top 25 broker partners declined to sign Ishbia's addendum, though it wouldn't reveal the names of the partners.
"In addition, one of UWM's largest partners – who, previous to the ultimatum, had barely worked with us – has committed to doing business with Rocket Pro TPO and is refusing to sign UWM's contract," a Rocket spokesperson told HousingWire. "Also, thousands and thousands of brokers told us they would not agree to UWM's terms."
The spokesperson added: "The real facts are that we are aware of many brokers who didn't even receive an addendum, let alone the 'broker shops' – meaning the actual brokerage firms – that they claim in the headline of their press release. To believe that 10,000 broker owners bent the knee to UWM is laughable."
When it's all said and done, Ishbia's ultimatum brought a lot to the surface in the broker channel. The announcement spurred a philosophical debate about what makes a broker: a brother-in-arms who would rally against perceived threats from multichannel lenders, or an independent professional whose ability to work with whoever gives the customer the best deal.
What do you think about the ultimatum? Is it good for consumers? Where do you see the wholesale channel in 2025? Share your thoughts anonymously by emailing me at jkleimann@housingwire.com.
Also, please make sure to check out my big HW+ feature on why brokers chose to be either "all in" or ditch UWM. Use the code "jamesLL" to sign up for HW+ for 33% off our annual subscription.
James Kleimann
Managing Editor, HousingWire
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