ACT Mortgage - Wholesale A, Alt A

We have received multiple confirmations today that ACT Mortgage, a wholesale lender from South Florida (www.actmort.com), has ceased operating. Here is one notice sent by an ACT Mortgage employee:

I wanted to personally get in touch with you on this manner. I'm afraid I have some bad news.

At this point, effective today, (June 21st, 2007) The President of ACT MORTGAGE has temporarily suspended all submissions, closings, fundings until further notice. I personally apologize for this inconvenience and while this was out of my control, I am hopeful that over the next couple of weeks, while ACT Mortgage is in the process of negotiating a deal, that you will feel free to call me at anytime with any questions you might have along the way. Please take note of my new personal email address and phone number below for the future. I hope that we are able to continue our business relationship moving forward wherever it might be that I end up over the next couple of weeks. Thanks and as always, I appreciate your loyalty over the past 8 years and look to continue working with you in the future.

Our tipster noted that the latest conforming rate sheet was dated June 20^th. Regarding the size of ACT Mortgage's operations, estimates we've received indicate they had over 100 employees and operated in New Jersey, California and Florida. We are attempting to gather additional information regarding their loan volume. Should you have any such data, please contact us.

Update 2007-06-28 We've recieved additional information regarding the size of ACT Mortgage's operations:

Back [in 2004] average [monthly] volume was $35m-$40m. Primarily doing loans in Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York.

By [2005] ACT was licensed in most states on the eastern seaboard. From Florida through the mid-Atlantic states into New England. Parts of the South and Southwest. They had opened a NJ branch but had trouble staffing it. The average monthly volume was $60m.

[ACT Mortgage] pulled the plug on the NJ branch and after the first of 2006 we really ramped up operations. [ACT Mortgage's] goal was $100m and they were going to open California. By May of 2006 we closed $105m. [After the month of June,] They never closed $100m again. Booked volume declined steadily every month. The California office came and went in a matter of 90 days. By May 2007 they closed $3.5m.