Scaling Up: How the MPF® Program Helped Grow Our Mortgage Business

Scaling Up: How the MPF® Program Helped Grow Our Mortgage Business

by Floyd Goode, Senior Vice President, Chief Lending Officer, TTCU Federal Credit Union

TTCU Federal Credit Union began in 1934 with an Oklahoma teacher making cash loans to fellow educators out of a cigar box in her desk. Today we continue to support education but on a much larger scale, serving more than 150,000 members with 21 branches throughout northeastern Oklahoma. Over the last decade and a half, our mortgage business has seen tremendous growth as well—to an extent that would not have been possible without the Federal Home Loan Banks’ Mortgage Partnership Finance® (MPF) Program.

Relationships Matter

When TTCU began selling loans into the secondary market through the MPF Program, our mortgage department numbered fewer than 10 people and lent about $30 million per year. Getting the support your team needs to learn and grow with the business—without feeling like you’re an inferior partner because you’re not one of the big dogs—is a big deal. Whenever we have a question about a product, pricing, or servicing, we can reach out directly to our MPF Account Manager and we’ll get a response within a couple of hours, not days. That was true back when we were printing out paper rate sheets and selling loans manually, and it’s still true now that we have over $250 million in volume.

Flexibility Fast-Tracks Growth

As we’ve scaled up our mortgage operations, the MPF Traditional products have given TTCU the tools and resources to operate like a larger lender, with much greater flexibility in reporting requirements than other GSEs as well as the option to continue servicing our members’ loans.

The MPF Traditional product does not charge loan-level price adjustments, which is a big bonus, especially if you’re looking at cash-out refinancing or lending to a member who might have elevated capacity on their credit cards but hasn’t missed a payment in five years. MPF Traditional gives us flat rates that cover many situations, which has allowed us to keep a lot of members who compare rates and find that ours are better.

Branching Out with the MPF Program

If we have the flexibility to offer our members the right loan product for their needs and circumstances, we can benefit their overall financial health. For example, there’s no sense in requiring someone to put 25% or even 5% down if they’re a veteran or tribe member who could benefit from FHA loan programs. So TTCU is leveraging our partnership with the MPF Program to offer a wider range of loans using the MPF Xtra® and MPF Government products, in addition to the MPF Traditional products we already rely on. As we continue to grow and evolve, the MPF Program is right there with us.

If your credit union is looking to scale up or diversify its mortgage business, contact your FHLBank Mortgage Relationship Manager or visit www.fhlbmpf.com to learn more about how the MPF Program can help.