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TBWs downfall may inconvenience locals
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      Last Tuesday, a significant event occurred in the mortgage lending industry that went relatively unnoticed by the main street media, but did not go unnoticed by local banks, lending institutions, and those who work in the real estate industry.
       Ocala, Fla.- based mortgage lender Taylor, Bean & Whitaker ("TBW") received notification from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae that it was being terminated and/or suspended as an approved seller and or servicer of mortgages for each of those respective agencies. Bottom line, for all intent and purposes, TBW was out of the mortgage business.
       As many of you have figured by this point in my column, a number of our local lending institutions used TBW as a buyer of mortgages originated by them. That is why many of you send your mortgage payment to TBW.
       What does the demise of the country's 12th largest mortgage lender and one of the largest in the southeast mean for us in Bulloch County? A major inconvenience is the best way to describe it at this point.
       For those in the process of closing a mortgage funded by TBW, you know that you have had to start all over again - which means locking in a new rate, a possible new appraisal, and submission of loan documents.
       For those of you - such as appraisers - who have done appraisals at the request of TBW, my hunch is that you have an outstanding balance that may take a while to collect. And the next mortgage company may ask you to do another appraisal that will have to be funded. Hence, the buyer and lending institution are on the hook again.
       Sherri Hinson, a mortgage loan officer with Farmers and Merchants Bank in Statesboro said she was in the process of closing a number of mortgages with TBW when they abruptly closed their doors.
       "In reference to loans in process with TBW, like everyone else, we have moved to another lender and I suspect that we will be able to meet the original 30 to 60 day time frame for closing a mortgage," she said. "We will have to see, but right now, that is way it appears. We don't use TBW exclusively and have a number of companies that we use. Since all of TBW's customers are going elsewhere, it is going to be very busy for mortgage lenders. Everyone on both ends is just going to have to work a little harder to make things happen for the home buyer."
       Hinson said she expects that TBW customers are going to have questions.
       "In reference to current customers, naturally, they are going to wonder if their mortgage is okay," she said. "It is fine. They need to continue to make payments to TBW. Things should be resolved by the end of September and they will receive written notification as to whom they should make their payment to in the event something has changed. Until some notification is issued, just keep doing what you have been doing."
       In the big picture, another "king" of the private mortgage industry has gone out of business leading to the growing concern that non-bank/wholesale lending channels are drying up resulting in a mortgage industry dominated by the largest retail banks. Bottom line, most likely - fewer choices for the consumer.
       At the time of its closing, TBW was the third largest endorsement lender of FHA-insured loans and the eighth largest Ginnie Mae issuer. According to reports, Bank of America will take over TBW's loan servicing duties.

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