Union Federal Wholesale Boosts National Presence Through Addition of Account Executives; Wholesale Lender Widens Reach with New Account Managers

FORT WAYNE, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 18, 2005--Union Federal Bank, a subsidiary of Waterfield Mortgage Company, the largest privately-held mortgage company in the United States, announced the recent addition of Michael Bender, Kevin Pettaway and Peter Scheuer to its Correspondent Lending division. Union Federal Bank is a mortgage loan origination company with wholesale branches throughout the United States.

"Union Federal Bank has a commitment to excellent customer service and our new staff members position our company to continue the tradition of exceeding our customer's expectations," said Dave DePodesta, executive vice president of Wholesale Lending for Union Federal Bank. "Michael, Kevin and Peter join our organization with a remarkable understanding of financial services and individual, exemplary track records. This group is representative of Union Federal Bank's promise to retain account executives that are ethically sound and understand the borrower's needs."

Michael Bender is the Northeastern regional area account manager. Prior to working with Union Federal Bank, Bender served as account executive for Cleveland, Ohio-based Ohio Savings Bank, where he managed a three state territory for the nations 11th largest correspondent lender. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Journalism from Shippensburg University.

Kevin Pettaway serves as an account manager in the Midwest region. Prior to joining the company, Pettaway served as vice president of National Business Development for Countrywide Home Loans, where he developed a marketing campaign in addition to presenting a joint venture program to bank and credit union executives.

Peter Scheuer serves as the Western regional account manager for Union Federal Bank. With more than thirty years of financial services industry experience, Scheuer has held many management positions within the banking and mortgage industry. He is the former executive vice president of Wholesale Lending for Irvine, Calif.-based Moneyline Lending Services Inc. Additionally, Scheuer serves on Freddie Mac's Customer Advisory Board and is a member of the Southern California Mortgage Bankers Association.

The recent additions to the correspondent lending staff have more than 45 collective years of experience in the mortgage industry.

About Union Federal Bank

Founded in 1928, Waterfield Mortgage Company, Inc. is the parent company of Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Waterfield Financial Corp., Union Federal Bank of Indianapolis and Waterfield Insurance Agency and the largest privately-held mortgage company in the country. Union Federal Bank Wholesale division, a subsidiary of Waterfield Mortgage Company Inc., is a mortgage loan origination company with retail branches throughout the United States. The company also provides wholesale originations nationwide. Union Federal Bank, founded in 1887 in Indianapolis, Ind., is backed by assets in excess of $3 billion with a servicing portfolio of more than $19 billion. Union Federal Bank offers table funding and closed loan purchases with products ranging from Alt-A with interest only features to new construction financing with one and two time closing options.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.