Pink slips arrived for nearly three dozen loan officers at Wyndham Capital Mortgage on Wednesday, HousingWire has learned.
The consumer direct mortgage lender, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, said it laid off 35 LOs across its offices in Dallas, Charlotte, Salt Lake City, Kansas City, and Phoenix.
In a statement, Jeff Douglas, CEO of Wyndham Capital Mortgage, said that the company is “well-positioned and continues making investments to compete in a purchase market and is poised to gain market share to meet the needs of today’s borrowers.”
Last year, Wyndham actively expanded, opening two hubs in Dallas and Phoenix, which pushed its office count to five.
It also grew its executive team. In January 2021, Wyndham hired Mike Ciambotti, a former Wells Fargo executive, to serve as its chief information officer. In November, the company brought on Melissa Smith, a former compliance executive at Key Bank, to serve as a senior vice president of risk and compliance.
Lenders – now is the time to market yourself
HousingWire CEO Clayton Collins and Wyndham Capital Mortgage SVP of Marketing Trey Rigdon discuss why loan officers should take control of their marketing efforts, even in today’s seller’s market.
Presented by: Wyndham Capital
The company has also made a recent push to expand its retail operations. Wyndham announced a plan in July 2021 to launch a retail division, and in August, hired former Citi executive Karen Mayfield to lead the national effort.
Adding retail loan officers was a “natural progression,” Douglas said at the time.
According to a company spokesperson, the company launched the division sometime in the fourth quarter of 2021.
In recent months, two other lenders with consumer direct models—Better.com and Interfirst Mortgage—also announced loan officer layoffs.
Analysts say lenders with consumer direct models, which tend to be refi-heavy and rely on call centers for intake, may struggle to find footing in a purchase market as rates climb and margins start to compress.
However, despite the layoffs, the company has 17 active job openings that have been posted on LinkedIn within the past week. Most of the vacancies advertised are for originator positions, with over four years of experience.
In the job postings, Wyndham notes that they are looking for mortgage professionals to “originate mortgage loans via telephone contact” and to make “outbound calls to company-provided warm leads.”
Wyndham, founded in 2001, has positioned itself as a fintech-focused mortgage lender. It has highlighted its proprietary software system and its use of augmented intelligence as factors that make it stand out from its competitors. The lender has also claimed that its closing timelines are 15% faster than the national average.
The company originates loans in 47 states and Washington, D.C., and originates both conventional and Ginnie Mae-backed loans.
