Fasthold Capital, Inc. is the lastest firm to jump headlong into the distressed mortgage market, with the announcement Tuesday morning that it had raised more than $300 million in committed capital to acquire assets as a principal investor. The Orange, Calif.-based company, like many other competitors now entering the space full-bore, started in the space in 2007, when the subprime credit crisis was just entering its critical stage. Fasthold managing partner and co-founder Michael Castanon told Housing Wire that the company will seek to deploy most, if not all, of the initial capital before the end of this year. “We’re in the second or third inning relative to liquidation of distressed properties,” he said. Like a growing number of players in the distressed mortgage space, Fasthold manages its own in-house servicing shop for the assets it acquires, although Castanon said the company will often put re-performing mortgages with a third-party servicer once a loan has been successfully modified. “In a time where some people are using the current real estate crisis to take advantage of customers, we have been successful in building a business based on our commitment to dealing fairly and honestly with our customers and successfully completing transactions,” said John Duden, managing partner and co-founder, in a press statement. The company’s funds thus far are comprised of capital raised from private investors, credit institutions and its own founders. The company is currently bidding on portfolios ranging from $1 million to $150 million, it said; but that bidding range could expand in coming months, Castanon signaled. The company just completed a purchase of $90 million in distressed mortgages, and Fasthold is targeting over $1 billion in deployed capital by the end of next year — a large number, but still a small percentage of what Castanon said he sees as the overall opportunity in distressed mortgages. For more information, visit http://www.fastholdcapital.com.