LoanDepot Announces $201.7 Million Quarterly Loss

Quarterly earnings reports are trickling in, giving us an inside look at just how strong of a start brokerages and real estate companies are having in this new year. And it was not the best quarter for LoanDepot…

Pointing to “market conditions” as the root cause for decline, the company announced a quarterly total revenue of $503.3 million, which represents a decrease of $201.7 million, or 29 percent, from the fourth quarter of 2021. Loan origination volume for the first quarter was $21.6 billion, a decrease of $7.5 billion or 26 percent from Q4.

Net loss for the first quarter was $91.3 million, compared to net income of $14.7 million in the prior quarter. The quarter-over-quarter decrease was primarily driven by the decrease in rate lock volume and gain on sale margin, partially offset by a decrease in total expense, per the earnings report.

“Our results reflected the sharp and rapid increase in market interest rates, which led to significantly lower profit margins during the latter half of the quarter,” said LoanDepot founder and executive chairman Anthony Hsieh. “While we made progress toward our goal of reducing the expense base to align with earlier expectations, our volumes have continued to decline and expense reductions have not kept pace with the rapidly changing environment. 

“Intense competition, lower volume and decreasing profit margins are putting pressure on the entire industry, which I believe creates long-term opportunities for LoanDepot to outperform, less efficient, less diversified competitors,” Hsieh concluded.