Atlanta-based Angel Oak Companies instituted a round of layoffs at its retail mortgage company on Friday, not long after trimming the workforce in its wholesale and correspondent business.
The latest jobs cut was at Angel Oak Home Loans, which reduced its headcount by 57 employees, comprising 15% of the total, a spokesperson told HousingWire.
The spokesperson added that the layoffs are to better position the company as it manages through the headwinds currently facing the mortgage industry. “Angel Oak Home Loans continues to serve homebuyers across the country and maintains staffing levels to meet the changing dynamics of the residential mortgage market.”
According to the mortgage data platform Modex, Angel Oak Home Loans originated a total volume of $2.44 billion in the last 12 months through 192 active loan officers and 45 branches – around 85.5% of the volume consisted of conventional loans and 54.1% was purchases.
On Sep. 28, HousingWire reported that pink slips were given to 75 employees at sister company Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions a week earlier, affecting 20% of its workforce, also due to the current economic environment. Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions originated roughly $5 billion in volume between July 2021 and July 2022, the company said.
Angel Oak’s companies specialize in non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) loans, which aren’t government-backed and aren’t eligible for purchase by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. As a result, they present a greater risk and typically come with higher interest rates.
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Through its mortgage-backed securities conduit Angel Mortgage Trust, the company launched a total of six non-QM private-label securities (PLS) offerings involving about 5,000 loans valued at $2.5 billion as of mid-September.
With surging rates, non-QM lenders struggled to sell their loans in the secondary market as investors sought higher yields. This liquidity problem caused non-QM competitors First Guaranty Mortgage Corporation (FGMC) and Sprout Mortgage to abruptly shut down.
