The
Pontiac,
Michigan-based
wholesale
lender
also
announced
it
has
selected


ICE
Mortgage
Technology’s
MSP
loan
servicing
system
as
its
servicing
platform,
with
a
strategic
focus
on
boosting
recapture
and
referral
business
through
its
broker
network.

“While
we
are
excited
about
the
cost
savings
for
UWM,
we’re
even
more
excited
about
the
opportunity
to
help
brokers
deepen
their
relationships
with
borrowers
by
leveraging
MSP,”
said
Mat
Ishbia,
chairman
and
president
of
UWM.

The
move
signals
the
broader
impact
of
the
Rocket-Mr.
Cooper
deal
on
the
mortgage
servicing
landscape.

As
first
reported
by

HousingWire,

UWM
will
now
send
the
majority
of
its
servicing
business
to


Cenlar
FSB,
stepping
away
from
Mr.
Cooper
entirely. Other
firms,
such
as


Rithm
Capital,
the
parent
of
multichannel
mortgage
lender Newrez, are
also
looking
to
capitalize
on
subservicing
opportunities
that
may
emerge
as
a
result
of
the
deal.

In
a
sales
call
that
took
place
just
days
after
the
Rocket-Mr.
Cooper
deal
was
announced,
Ishbia
said
that, “All
new
loans
will
be
partnered
with
our
other
partner
Cenlar,
and
then
eventually
we’ll
just
do
it
ourselves
when
we
need
to.” 

Ishbia
did
not
discuss
the
plan
to
service
loans
in-house
or
its
deal
with
ICE
on
its
sales
call
with
brokers
on
Wednesday,
April
30,
sources
said.

For
many
wholesale
lenders,
servicing
has
become
a
key
competitive
advantage.


Pennymac,
the
third-largest
U.S.
wholesale
lender
after
UWM
and
Rocket,
has
emphasized
the
importance
of
its
servicing
portfolio
in
efforts
to
grow
its
broker
market
share.

UWM’s
servicing
portfolio
stood
at
$242.4
billion
in
unpaid
principal
balance
(UPB)
as
of
December
31,
2024,
with
a
weighted
average
interest
rate
of
4.76%.
The
portfolio
has
declined
from
$299.5
billion
the
previous
year,
reflecting
UWM’s
strategy
of
selling
mortgage
servicing
rights
(MSRs)—primarily
those
with
higher
coupon
rates—to
deleverage
its
balance
sheet
and
reinvest
in
originations.

Tim
Bowler,
president
of
ICE
Mortgage
Technology,
said
the
company
is
a
“neutral
provider
of
third-party
software,”
so
that
“lenders
and
servicers
can
rest
assured
that
we
will
always
be
in
their
corner.” 

The
ICE-UWM
collaboration
also
includes
a
homeowner
portal,
offering
borrowers
a
streamlined
experience
throughout
the
loan
lifecycle.
Features
include
access
to
hardship
assistance,
support
tools,
lien
release
processing,
and
API
integrations
to
enhance
operational
efficiency.

Rocket
announced
that
it
was
dropping
ICE’s
MSP
in
favor
of

Sagent,
the
loan
servicing
platform
that
Mr.
Cooper
used
(and
has
a
reported
20%
stake
in).

James
Kleimann
contributed
reporting.