Guild Mortgage Earns Fifth Straight STAR Performer Recognition from Fannie Mae

Leading independent mortgage lender honored for its competency, capacity and overall performance in Solution Delivery for 2021 STAR Program year

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Guild Mortgage (NYSE: GHLD), a rapidly growing mortgage lending company originating and servicing residential loans since 1960, has earned its fifth consecutive Servicer Total Achievement and Rewards™ (STAR™) performer recognition from Fannie Mae.

Guild received recognition in the Solution Delivery category for the 2021 STAR Program year, earning the distinction for the first time in this category covering loss mitigation operations, retention and liquidation. Throughout Guild’s five years as a selected STAR Servicer, Fannie Mae has recognized the company in the General Servicing category four times.

“Servicing became even more complex during the second year of the pandemic, with difficult economic times for many homeowners,” said Mary Ann McGarry, CEO of Guild Mortgage. “This required being proactive in educating our customers about their options to keep them in their homes, including through refinancing and forbearance. Our loss mitigation team, servicing initiatives and new processes helped thousands of homeowners and strengthened customer retention as part of our mission for creating customers for life.”

Initiated in 2011, the STAR Program is a performance management and recognition program that defines industry standards and leading practices. It seeks to understand and communicate best practices across the servicing community, provide a consistent methodology for measuring servicer performance, and identify and recognize Fannie Mae’s highest-performing servicers.

The STAR Performer recognition is reserved for top performing servicers in one or more of three categories: General Servicing, Solution Delivery and Timeline Management. STAR Performers are rated across key process areas, including relevant people strategies, processes, and applicable metrics.

Guild generated a record $36.8 billion in origination volume in 2021, up 5% from $35.2 billion in 2020. The company’s in-house servicing portfolio grew 18% year-over-year to $70.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2021, with Guild retaining servicing rights for 80% of total loans sold.

“The STAR program recognizes lenders that are continually improving their processes,” said Russ Fowlie, executive vice president, loan servicing at Guild. “Fannie Mae praised Guild for helping preserve homeownership by facilitating a record number of long-term solutions to borrowers as they emerged from forbearance. Our loss mitigation and servicing teams found new ways to help our customers through challenging times, and we appreciate the commitment and hard work being recognized by Fannie Mae.”

Fannie Mae's STAR Program has acknowledged mortgage servicers for their effective, standardized processes that help drive their performance and operational success.

"We're proud of the 2021 STAR Program recipients, and their dedicated efforts to support and facilitate equitable and sustainable access to homeownership," said Cyndi Danko, senior vice president and single-family chief credit officer, Fannie Mae. "Whether helping homeowners emerge from forbearance or providing the resources needed to refinance their loan, these 2021 STAR Program recipients demonstrated their commitment to improving the homeownership journey."

Through partnerships with government organizations like Fannie Mae, Guild has worked to introduce unique low-down payment and first-time homebuyer loan programs. A recognized leader in low-to-moderate income affordable and sustainable lending, Guild has been a pioneer in offering VA and FHA loans for decades.

Headquartered in San Diego, Guild Mortgage is a leading national lender with an established history of offering a comprehensive array of loan products and partnering with government organizations to help deliver the promise of home in every neighborhood and community. Its loan professionals can serve the needs of any homebuyer, from helping first-time buyers achieve homeownership, often through government loan programs, to those looking for jumbo loans. Guild also helps active duty and retired military personnel who qualify for VA loans with 100% financing and flexible qualifying standards. The company is consistently recognized for its community impact, commitment to customer service, strength in regulatory compliance, and workplace culture.

About Guild Mortgage

Founded in 1960 when the modern U.S. mortgage industry was just forming, Guild Mortgage Company is a nationally recognized independent mortgage lender providing residential mortgage products and local in-house origination and servicing. Guild’s collaborative culture and commitment to diversity and inclusion enable it to deliver a personalized experience for each customer. With more than 5,000 employees and over 260 retail branches, Guild has relationships with credit unions, community banks, and other financial institutions and services loans in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Guild’s highly trained loan professionals are experienced in government-sponsored programs such as FHA, VA, USDA, down payment assistance programs and other specialized loan programs. Guild Mortgage Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Guild Holdings Company, whose shares of Class A common stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GHLD.