Mortgage servicing is thriving due to homeowners deciding not to sell, says Mr. Cooper Group CEO
Mr. Cooper Group CEO Jay Bray joins 'The Exchange' to discuss hedging rising rates with investment in mortgage servicing,ย ...
Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, Mr Cooper
Search every verified Kurt Johnson interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote โ each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. In a September 2023 interview, Mr. Cooper Group CEO Jay Bray stated that the company's mortgage servicing business is "crushing it right now" and "doing incredibly well," attributing this to existing homeowners choosing not to sell their homes. Bray noted that the origination side of the business "has slowed down dramatically" due to interest rates, though the company is investing in its origination platform in preparation for the next cycle. He said Mr. Cooper has acquired over $100 billion in servicing in 2023, benefiting from servicing being sold in the marketplace. Bray expressed the personal view that mortgage rates will not decline until the second quarter of 2024 and will "stay higher for longer." He stated that home prices are unlikely to come down significantly due to a supply imbalance, as many homeowners with low interest rates have no incentive to sell. Regarding potential market distress, Bray said the company is not seeing anything concerning currently, as homeowners have substantial equity, but he predicted some stress could emerge within a year to 18 months. He also discussed the company's home auction business, suggesting a future marketplace for retail home sales through competitive bidding.
“The servicing business is crushing it right now. Existing homeowners are staying in their home and that is great for the servicing business, so it is doing incredibly well.”
“The origination side of the business has slowed down dramatically and it is really all due to rates. We don't really see that returns for, you know, probably until sometime next year and I don't think that rates will go down.”
“We are investing in our origination platform, we want to be ready for the next cycle. But right now, it is all about servicing.”
“If you look at the marketplace today, there is a lot of servicing that is being sold and we've been a big beneficiary of that. We would have acquired already this year over $100 billion in servicing.”
“I think that you could see some distress. Like to your point, we're not really seeing anything right now that is concerning. Homeowners have a ton of equity. But over time, you know, you will see some stress, but I think that we're probably a year to 18 months away from that.”
“I do not see [mortgage rates] going down. The way I think about it personally, I don't think that you will see rates go down until probably second quarter of next year. Rates will stay higher for longer.”
“Because of the supply imbalance, you are not going to see, you know, prices come down in a big way. Millions of homeowners have the 3% interest rates, right, and so there is no incentive for them to sell. If they did sell, where would they go?”
“I think that there will be a marketplace where you will actually see kind of retail homes being sold. Today our auction is predominantly focused on the government programs, but I do think that you will see marketplace for where people can actually go and list their home and be a competitive bidding process just like yo...”
Mr. Cooper Group CEO Jay Bray joins 'The Exchange' to discuss hedging rising rates with investment in mortgage servicing,ย ...
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