Skyline Financial, Calabasas, Calif., said it has raised $8.2 million in new capital, money it will use to expand its fast growing retail production network.
The nonbank mortgage firm currently employs about 130 loan officers and is in a hiring mode.
Company CEO Bill Dallas said the company is currently operating at a run-rate of about $100 million new loans a month, 60% of which are refinancings. "That works out to about $1.2 billion a year," said Dallas.
Earlier in the year about 70% of Skyline's production was purchase money loans. Most of its fundings come from California and the surrounding states.
In June of 2009 Dallas, a well known mortgage banking veteran, bought a 25% stake in Skyline. His investors in the company include GRP Partners, and Chaparal Investments. (Dallas' investment vehicle is called Dallas Capital Management.)
The Skyline CEO noted that raising money in today's market environment is anything but easy. "There's a massive disdain for real estate right now," he told National Mortgage News. "Investors are concerned about what could happen, what might happen…it's not easy."
But Dallas believes the mortgage banking industry of today is "rational and sane."
Skyline is a Freddie Mac and FHA approved lender. It has an application in with Fannie Mae.
