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The Mortgage Industry
University of Phoenix
Learning Team A
Scott Jennings, Jennifer Pacelko, Lisa Staley, Jenean Witherspoon
July 5, 2008
Overview of the Mortgage Industry
To mortgage something is to convey the interest of property as “security for the repayment of money borrowed” (Mortgage, n.d.). The mortgage banking industry includes several firms, some of which are Washington Mutual, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup. The industry landscape is very competitive and is stimulated by home sales and the refinancing that comes about when mortgage rates are low.
Large companies have big economies of scale in operations. Small companies compete successfully by funneling mortgages to the large companies. The industry is fragmented at the bottom but highly concentrated at the top: the largest 50 companies hold more than 70 percent of the market (Industry Overview, 2008).
Most Americans will own at least one mortgage at some point in his or her life. Consumers often enter into a mortgage agreement blindly and have to play catch-up in order to make knowledgeable decisions concerning their mortgage agreement. This overview will discuss the competition, mortgage products, operations, and technology that are needed for today’s consumers to make educated decisions concerning their part of the mortgage industry.
History of the Industry
The mortgage industry has quite a history and it evolved with the urbanization of the United States. (Nackoul, 2006). It started with banks approving loans for homes, land and any kind of real estate. There became a need for mortgage brokers because there was a market for people that were turned down by the bank. One of the first mort ...