NetBank Reports Mortgage-Related Loss

NetBank Inc., an Atlanta-based online bank, has reported a mortgage-related net loss of $1.4 million ($0.03 per share) for the third quarter, compared with net income of $4.0 million ($0.09 per share) a year earlier.NetBank said the results include a pretax provision of $3.5 million related to a group of conforming mortgages with an outstanding balance of $13 million. "The company believes certain misrepresentations may have been made by one or more of the parties involved during the loan application process," NetBank said. Mortgage production totaled $3.8 billion in the third quarter, a rise of 9.0% from that of the second quarter, the company reported. The performance of servicing assets went from a loss of $2.3 million in the second quarter to pretax income of $130,000 in the third quarter "as higher rates and improving valuations for mortgage servicing rights led to prior impairment expense recovery," NetBank said. The company can be found online at http://www.netbank.com.