Prepayments, Servicing Up At Countrywide

Prepayments of mortgages in Countrywide Credit Industries' servicing portfolio jumped to $1 billion in June, reaching a rate of about 10% a year, the company reported.

Chairman David S. Loeb said the servicing portfolio nevertheless continued to grow, reaching $123 billion, up from $121 billion at the end of May. He noted that Countrywide, based in Pasadena, Calif., customarily offsets its portfolio runoff through increased originations and a financial hedge, which stabilize earnings from servicing.

Mr. Loeb also noted that Countrywide's pipeline of loans in process climbed to $5 billion, the highest level in more than a year. The pipeline translates into mortgage fundings in coming months. For June, fundings reached $2.8 billion, also the highest in more than a year and up by more than $640 million since May 1994.

Average daily applications for loans climbed to $199 million in the month, a 16% increase. Mr. Loeb noted that growth was especially strong in Countrywide's consumer markets division, which gained 31%.

Refinancings jumped to about a third of all loans in June, Mr. Loeb said, from 22% in May. The mix also shifted more strongly toward fixed-rate loans, about 75%, from 70% in May.

Mr. Loeb noted that his company had completed a $200 million offering of common stock. He said the proceeds would be used to build market share in production and servicing.

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SHAWNEE, Kan. - Advanced Financial Inc. reported a significant increase in its pipeline of mortgage applications in process.

For the month ended June 30,, the pipeline total stood at $22 million, a 230% increase from the yearend level.

The pipeline total was buoyed by record June loan applications of $15.2 million, a positive trend in comparison to May totals of $12.3 million. New loan applications for the quarter ended June 30 totaled $39.1 million, compared with $24 million for the quarter ended March 31.

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