First Tennessee Bank, Memphis, ended June with $1.9 billion of warehouse commitments on its books, just about flat compared to the same period a year ago.
“Business is off this year,” said Bob Garrett, executive vice president in charge of warehouse lending. “A year ago we were swamped with requests for lines. Right now it's dropped down to a mild roar, but we're still hopeful.”
Warehouse lending is a business driven by residential fundings. Mortgage bankers are on track to originate between $1.1 trillion and $1.2 trillion this year, compared to $1.6 trillion in 2010, according to figures compiled by National Mortgage News and the Quarterly Data Report.
Most of FT's clients are nonbanks that fund between $500 million and $1 billion a year. “We're a niche lender,” said Garrett.
The bank's lines usually do not exceed $30 million per institution, though Garrett said FT will lend more than that amount if need be.
Even though its commitments were flat, its client base grew to 135 nonbanks from 125 a year ago.
