Stearns Lending has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire an equity interest in Certainty Home Loans.
Terms of the deal, which is expected to close by August 31, were not disclosed.
After the closing, Certainty’s current ownership will continue to hold a significant share of the equity.
The company name will remain the same and it will continue to be led by Jim Clapp, president, and Doug Casbon, executive vice president and national production manager.
Founded in 2000, Certainty Home Loans underwent a rebrand and name change in October 2017. That same year, it originated $1.4 billion in residential loans.
“Certainty has a long track record of success and has a retail profile that is a strong complement to the existing Stearns retail platform,” says David Schneider, CEO of Stearns Lending, in a release. “We believe that combining the retail platform of Certainty with Stearns’ industry-leading technology, direct access to capital markets expertise, and operational excellence will produce tremendous synergies that benefit both companies. This structure leverages the experience Stearns has with its current joint venture business model which currently operates under ten different brands across the country.”
“The partnership with Stearns Lending brings together like-minded companies with strong leadership teams committed to operational excellence and focused on the core value that people and relationships are powerful tools in achieving success,” adds Clapp. “This partnership allows Certainty Home Loans to further accelerate our growth plans by leveraging Stearns’ best-in-class technology platform to streamline and improve interactions with partners, customers and each other while staying true to our brand promise of providing confident closings.”