{"id":775,"date":"2007-04-19T14:19:00","date_gmt":"2007-04-19T21:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seattlebubble.com\/blog\/?p=775"},"modified":"2007-04-19T14:19:00","modified_gmt":"2007-04-19T21:19:00","slug":"wamu-trying-to-cope-with-slowdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seattlebubble.com\/blog\/2007\/04\/19\/wamu-trying-to-cope-with-slowdown\/","title":{"rendered":"WaMu Trying to Cope With Slowdown"},"content":{"rendered":"

Local mortgage giant Washington Mutual has been in the news quite a bit the last few days. On Tuesday, Seattle Times business reporter Amy Martinez made the (not-so-bold) prediction that WaMu won’t escape subprime turmoil<\/a>.<\/p>\n

During the housing boom of the past several years, Washington Mutual was among the nation’s top lenders in the high-risk sector of subprime mortgages.<\/p>\n

Now subprime loans industrywide are failing at an alarming rate.<\/p>\n

Although the Seattle-based thrift has cut back its subprime lending, it still has a lot of the loans on its books.<\/p>\n

Exactly how vulnerable it remains will become clearer today when WaMu holds its annual shareholders meeting and releases first-quarter financial results.<\/p>\n

The high-credit-risk market known as “subprime” represented 9 percent of WaMu’s overall loan portfolio at the end of 2006. Analysts who follow the company predict first-quarter profit will suffer as a result.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Un-shockingly, she was proven absolutely correct later that day when WaMu’s first quarter results were released<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Washington Mutual Inc. said Tuesday its first-quarter profits slid 20 percent amid a nationwide implosion of the subprime home loan market.
…
Kerry Killinger, Washington Mutual’s chairman and chief executive, said the company’s retail banking, card services and commercial groups fared well, while the home loan market – particularly the subprime segment for consumers with high-risk credit histories – remained a serious challenge.<\/p>\n

Washington Mutual’s home loans group posted a first-quarter loss of $113 million compared to a $52 million profit during the year-ago period. The company suffered a quarterly loss of $164 million on sales of subprime mortgages, alone.<\/p>\n

To limit further damage as the housing slump continues, Washington Mutual said it had scaled back its subprime portfolio and had set aside more money to cover future loan losses: $234 million for the quarter compared to $82 million in first quarter 2006.<\/p>\n

“Over the past 12 months, we have taken a number of prudent actions to reduce our exposure to the subprime mortgage industry,” Killinger said in a statement. “These actions, along with a diversified business mix, limited our exposure to the mortgage market’s downturn and position us well to expand and grow as market conditions improve.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Among those “prudent actions” is an open offer to refinance<\/a> some of their riskiest loans into more traditional products at discounted rates:<\/p>\n

Washington Mutual Inc. said Wednesday it will refinance up to $2 billion in subprime mortgages to help borrowers avoid default and foreclosure.<\/p>\n

The program will allow subprime borrowers who remain current on their existing loans and are bracing for payment increases to apply for discounted fixed-rate loans or other refinancing options.<\/p>\n

“Stepping up and helping our customers stay in their homes is in the best interest of our borrowers, our communities and WaMu,” Kerry Killinger, chairman and chief executive of the Seattle-based savings and loan, said in a statement.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Will measures like these be enough to keep WaMu from experiencing serious financial pain as the consequences of yesterday’s loose lending begin to pile up? Only time will tell, but at least WaMu has one important thing going for it: headquartered in the specialest place on earth!<\/p>\n

(Amy Martinez, Seattle Times<\/a>, 04.17.2007<\/i>)
(Bill Virgin, Seattle P-I<\/a>, 04.17.2007<\/i>)
(Associated Press, KOMO TV<\/a>, 04.17.2007<\/i>)
(Associated Press, Seattle P-I<\/a>, 04.18.2007<\/i>)
(Bloomberg News, Seattle P-I<\/a>, 04.18.2007<\/i>)<\/p>\n

\n
Seattle Bubble Tip Jar<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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