Wholesale reverse mortgage veteran Sun West Mortgage Company is in the process of launching a retail division, according to company executives. The family-owned Cerritos-based reverse mortgage company has hired Robin Bergh, formerly of Wells Fargo, to head up the new channel.
Bergh, who has been in the reverse mortgage business for 15 years, has begun to recruit aggressively and has a team of retail loan officers on board to help build the business.
“We will grow nationally,” said Bergh, “probably one state at a time.”
That growth plan is to be slow and controlled, the company said, where the right opportunities exist. Within 12 to 18 months, Sun West hopes the retail side will be around 30% of its business overall.
With its large network of wholesale lenders and retail market share recently abandoned by Financial Freedom and Bank of America, Sun West is positioned to gain, said Bergh. “The market is changing and is ready to grow.”
Additionally, the company sees an opportunity in that some brokers looking to join a retail team are already familiar with Sun West on the reverse side, having delivered loans to the company in the past. Sun West’s $6 billion servicing business is also seen as a potential growth vehicle.
Sun West is the second major lender to introduce a retail channel recently; Reverse Mortgage Solutions (RMS) launched a retail call center and correspondent channel in March.
Written by Elizabeth Ecker
Editors note: A previous version of this article said Sun West was based in San Diego.
