Higher mortgage rates, lower transaction volumes and increased competition force first bay national bank Shut down its residential mortgage business and cut jobs.
first bay financial corp.The parent company of BayFirst National Bank announced last week that its board of directors began closing down the bank’s nationwide network of residential mortgage-producing offices. The company said the bank will continue to originate mortgages at its local Florida office.
“Given the impact of the decline in mortgage volumes in recent quarters on the company’s operating performance, and the uncertainty surrounding the near- and medium-term mortgage outlook, we have made the difficult decision to terminate our nationwide residential mortgage production offices. Network, CEO Anthony Leo said in a prepared statement last week.
The Florida bank plans to focus on building community banking and leveraging Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, he said. Leo said SBA lending through the bank’s CreditBench division grew to record levels and continued to add more staff.
BayFirst ranks eighth on list of the nation’s most active SBA lenders, according to U.S. Small Business Administration. As of Sept. 22, it had approved 906 SBA loans totaling $308.8 million.
The executive added that the bank opened its eighth banking center in West Bradenton, Fla., in September and will prioritize expanding its banking offices in the Tampa Bay area.
The 30-year fixed rate surged above 6%, more than doubling from January, and lenders have been laying off staff to cut costs.Almost every lender has multiple rounds of layoffs with some banks such as Santander Bank Shut down its mortgage residential business. The Spanish bank announced the decision in February, saying it would “focus on products, services and digital capabilities that allow us to better meet changing consumer needs”. Santander is still in the commercial mortgage business.
BayFirst expects an estimated after-tax expense of approximately $3 to $4 million related to discontinuing the residential mortgage business. The closure of this business line is subject to any necessary regulatory notices and approvals and is expected to be completed by November 11. On the 24th, the bank said.
Founded in 1999, the bank has traded volume of $1.6 billion over the past 12 months and averaged monthly revenue of $123 million, according to Mortgage Technology Platform. modem. according to National Multi-State Licensing System (NMLS), the bank has 232 registered mortgage officers.