Pulte/Centex Merger to Create 23rd Largest Lender

Once homebuilders Pulte Homes and Centex Corp. complete their just announced merger, their combined mortgage units will rank 23rd nationwide in residential originations, according to figures compiled by National Mortgage News. However, when it comes to residential servicing rights, neither of the their mortgage divisions service much in the way of loans. Two years ago — before the A- to D credit market crashed — Centex sold its subprime division, Centex Home Equity, to a hedge fund. In the fourth quarter Pulte Mortgage, Englewood, Colo., ranked 29th among all funders ($848 million) with Centex's CTX Mortgage ranking 34th with originations of $601 million. It's expected that, in time, the two publicly traded HBs will merge their mortgage divisions, though at press time this could not be confirmed.