This week's newsmakers included SoFi, Redfin, Better and more
Mortgage fintech news ran the gamut this week. SoFi Technologies reported 2021 Q4 losses. Redfin released a new report on when American homeowners sell their homes. Bankjoy added 16 credit unions nationally to its roster of clients. The fintech wemlo said it has added support for new loan products. In the UK, Mortgage Brain acquired Mortgage Engine. Better Mortgage, an affiliate of digital homeownership company Better, is now doing business in Hawaii and New Hampshire.
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SoFi Technologies, Inc. (SOFI) reported losses of more than $111 million in the 2021 fourth quarter, though company CEO Anthony Noto said the San Francisco-based digital financial services company hit new highs on a number of financial and operating metrics despite “an increasingly challenging operating environment.”
Read more: Mortgage tech news round-up: February 25
The Q4 loss amounted to negative $0.15 per share, compared to an $82.6 million loss, or negative $1.85 per share, in the 2020 fourth quarter.
Noto noted in prepared remarks that the company achieved “all-time highs” in terms of members and products added, as well as customer engagement.
The company finished 2021 with 3.5 million SoFi members, versus 1.6 million at the start of 2021. Of that number, 523,000 were added in the 2021 fourth quarter.
Total net revenue for the company surpassed $285.6 million during Q4, up 67% from $171.5 million in the 2020 fourth quarter.
SoFi provides financial products digitally including mortgages, student and auto loan refinancing, personal loans, credit cards, investing and banking.
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Typical American homeowners in 2021 spent just over 13 years in their dwelling before selling it, according to a new report from fintech real estate brokerage Redfin.
The average of 13.2 years is down slightly from the peak of 13.5 years in 2020. That’s up significantly, however, from 10.1 years in 2012.
Read next: Redfin Mortgage expands to Florida
Redfin said that the time homeowners spent in their homes flattened in 2021 in part due to pandemic-fueled remote work, which led to record numbers of Americans moving to other more affordable areas of the country. Record low mortgage rates also encouraged more homebuyers to enter the market.
Redfin noted, however, that Americans are generally staying longer in their homes than previously because of a shortage of homes for sale, relatively low monthly payments and more older homeowners staying put.
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Bankjoy, a Detroit-based digital banking fintech, said it has added 16 credit unions nationally to its roster of clients.
The credit unions are in areas including Texas, Ohio, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Illinois, Alaska and Arizona.
Bankjo’s modern banking technology covers membership applications, online banking, mobile banking, online loan applications, conversational AI, statements and more.
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The fintech wemlo, a technology-focused mortgage loan processing startup, said it has added support for new loan products.
The Denver-based company said the support, on its “all-in-one” digital platform, will help mortgage brokers and loan originators have a seamless and efficient loan processing experience. Wemlo said its platform now supports processing solutions for nonqualified mortgage (Non-QM) loans including DSCR & Bank statement, specialized borrower assistance for low credit score and down payment assistance, manufactured home and construction loans, and also VA IRRRL and FHA Streamline loans.
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Mortgage Brain has acquired Mortgage Engine, according to the Financial Reporter.
Mortgage Brain is a provider of point-of-sale, compliance, mortgage software, electronic trading and website services for mortgage intermediaries, according to its LinkedIn profile. Mortgage Engine is a startup platform using API technology to revamp the mortgage process by connecting lenders to distributors and intermediaries, according to LinkedIn and the Financial Reporter.
Neither side is disclosing financial terms.
Plans call for integrating the existing lenders supported by Mortgage Engine onto Submissions Brain, Mortgage Brain’s multi-lender application and submission gateway, the story noted. The companies are aiming for a seamless transition.
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Better, a digital homeownership company, said its Better Mortgage affiliate is now doing business in Hawaii and New Hampshire.
The expansion follows Better’s launch in Massachusetts in November. Now, the fintech’s offerings are available to 99% of the US market, according to the company.
Better’s digital homeownership platform offers mortgage, real estate, title and homeowners insurance services. Better Mortgage is designed to make the process simpler, faster and cheaper by combining technology with human intelligence to remove lender fees and commissions.
The company said its process allows homeowners to close as much as 10 days faster than the industry average.
New York-based Better, founded in 2016, said it funded $45 billion in loan volume during the period ending in September 2021. The company said its Better Plus, and Better Cover and Better Settlement Services provided over $70 million in coverage.
