Despite the biggest year ever for mortgage originations, pay-day wasn't quite as bountiful for many top home-loan executives last year as it was in 1992.
A look at proxy statements from most of the major publicly held mortgage concerns shows that senior executives generally received less in 1993 than in '92.
But if pay envelopes were a bit slimmer, they were still quite nice. In fact, seven managers at the 11 companies surveyed received $1 million or more in salaries and bonuses.
Carl D. Jacobs, president of Carl D. Jacobs & Associates, of Woodland Hills, Calif., said many lenders cut back on compensation because profits were deflated by writeoffs in servicing portfolios because of the huge volume of refinancings.
At the top of the pay list was Lee E. Shelton, vice chairman and managing director of Resource Bancshares Mortgage Group Inc., Columbia, S.C.
Resource, a relative newcomer to the mortgage business, paid Mr. Shelton $1,528,608 last year, including a bonus of more than $1.2 million. In 1992, he was paid more than $1,608,852.
But there is little doubt that Angelo R. Mozilo, vice chairman of Countrywide Credit Industries, will supplant Mr. Shelton at the top of the list as soon as Countrywide releases its proxy. The document is due out within the next several weeks.
Mr. Mozilo, whose firm is the nation's largest originator and servicer, earned $2,500,371 in the fiscal year ended Feb. 28, 1993.
William Rast, president of Hamilton Financial Services Corp., San Francisco, was the the lowest-paid top executive in the sample, earning $380,000.
That's much better than he did in 1992, when he was paid $198,718. Hamilton is midsize as a mortgage originator.
Besides Mr. Shelton, some of those who took pay cuts in 1993 were: Ronn K. Lytle, chairman, chief executive officer, and president, Capstead Mortgage Corp., Dallas; Andrew D. Woodward Jr., chairman and chief executive officer, Fleet Mortgage Group Inc., Columbia, S.C.; and John T. French, chief executive officer, Plaza Home Mortgage Corp., Santa Ana, Calif.
Mr. Jacobs, the compensation expert, said mortgage companies like Plaza were still giving top executives long-term packages that spread out compensation, and this may make current compensation look a bit smaller. That's a trend that started a few years ago and seems to be continuing, he said.
One executive who did especially well was Terrance G. Hodel, president and chief operating officer, North American Mortgage Co., Santa Rosa, Calif. He made $1,212,081 last year, up from $872,900 in 1992. North American is No. 2 among independent mortgage companies.
But his loan production executives, benefiting from generous bonuses in a high-volume market, also did very well. C. William Blomquist, North American's senior vice president and Eastern regional manager, earned $1,482,883. Ken Keeler, another senior regional vice president, earned $1,052,285.
Although originations are tumbling this year, Mr. Jacobs said executives probably will be paid "higher than you would expect."
