Ocwen Enters Agreement to Buy Homeward Residential for $750M

""Ocwen Financial Corporation"":http://www.ocwen will purchase ""Homeward Residential Holdings, Inc."":https://www.gohomeward.com/servicing/home.asp for $750 million, Ocwen announced Wednesday in a release.

[IMAGE]

Ocwen will buy the Dallas-based servicer and originator from private equity firm WL Ross & Co. The breakdown for the transaction includes $588 million in cash and $162 million in Ocwen convertible preferred stock. Atlanta-based Ocwen won't need to raise additional equity capital to complete the transaction.

According to the release, Homeward Residential services about 422,000 mortgage loans and has an aggregate unpaid principal balance of over $77 billion. Homeward's loan origination business includes correspondent and retail lending.

[COLUMN_BREAK]

""Homeward brings with it a global servicing platform as well as a growing origination business that is already operating at a $10 billion annual run-rate after launching in late 2011,"" said Ocwen's Executive Chairman William Erbey.

Homeward was organized by WL Ross & Co. in 2007 and was previously known as American Home Mortgage Servicing.

In a release, Ron Faris, CEO of Ocwen said, ""Homeward has a well-deserved reputation for excellence in the mortgage industry. We are excited about the synergistic combination of the attractive servicing portfolio and platform, as well as the origination platform which will provide organic growth and will further Ocwen's ability to work with existing borrowers on refinancing opportunities.""

Dave Applegate, CEO of Homeward, added, ""We share Ocwen's high standards and believe that our corporate culture and theirs are very compatible. We are excited to join an enterprise with such momentum.""

Ocwen services residential and commercial loans and provides special servicing and asset management services. The company also has additional offices in West Palm Beach, Orlando, Houston, and Washington, D.C.

Founded by Wilbur L. Ross, Jr. in 2000, WL Ross & Co. has been involved with the restructuring of more than $300 billion of troubled assets.