What We're Hearing

As we reported last week, Total Mortgage Services of Connecticut soon will enter the wholesale sector and hopes to table fund its first loan by the end of this month. For 13 years it's been a retail lender. But we continue to hear rumors that a handful of hedge funds might enter the wholesale space with an eye toward jumbo lending, a niche that is suffering terribly from a lack of liquidity. John Walsh, who runs TMS, told us he recently facilitated a $2.2 million jumbo loan, offering the borrower a no-points 4 and 1/8th five-year ARM. Of course, the borrower put 50% down on the property. Mr. Walsh declined to name the funder. As for TMS' move into table funding, the company has hired Jim Lynch to be its EVP of wholesale and Robin Buttner as wholesale coordinator. Mr. Lynch used to work for Chase, Ms. Buttner for Homecomings...