{"id":48729,"date":"2026-04-13T13:22:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T10:22:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/guilds-jim-cory-on-bayview-deal-and-reverse-mortgage-trends\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T13:22:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T10:22:36","slug":"guilds-jim-cory-on-bayview-deal-and-reverse-mortgage-trends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/guilds-jim-cory-on-bayview-deal-and-reverse-mortgage-trends\/","title":{"rendered":"Guild\u2019s Jim Cory on Bayview deal and reverse mortgage trends"},"content":{"rendered":"

As consolidation reshapes the mortgage landscape, Bayview Asset Management<\/strong>\u2019s acquisition<\/a> of Guild Mortgage<\/a><\/strong> is emerging as a case study in how to scale without disruption, particularly in the often-misunderstood reverse mortgage space.<\/p>\n

In a conversation with HousingWire<\/strong>\u2018s Reverse Mortgage Daily, Jim Cory<\/a>, managing director of reverse mortgages at Guild Mortgage and co-chair<\/a> of the board for the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association<\/strong> (NRMLA<\/a>), shared details on how the transition has unfolded, why the deal is viewed as a \u201cmassive net positive,\u201d and how broader shifts like product innovation and growing participation by large independent mortgage banks are redefining the trajectory of reverse mortgage lending.<\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<\/em><\/p>\n

Sarah Wolak: Has Bayview\u2019s acquisition changed or enhanced Guild\u2019s reverse division?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jim Cory:<\/strong> The acquisition<\/a> went very smoothly. Bayview basically said, \u201cWe want Guild to run as Guild\u201d and kept all the management in place. So as far as that goes, it\u2019s the same group overall at Guild, including on the reverse side.<\/p>\n

Bayview is excellent at developing products, and we see this as a benefit. It brings a lot of capital to the table, so we\u2019ll see what changes happen going forward, but we\u2019re seeing this as a massive net positive.<\/p>\n

Wolak: That\u2019s interesting, since acquisitions can involve companies deciding to clear house and start from scratch. How has the transition been<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> Not easy, but it hasn\u2019t been disruptive. That\u2019s the best way to put it. It\u2019s a massive net positive.<\/p>\n

Wolak: Shifting to the state of reverse, many stories over the past few months have centered on concerns<\/a> about the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program. Are there any concerns or emerging trends that you\u2019re noticing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> I\u2019d point to no concerns; I see the reverse business being stronger than ever. I see two major trends going on, though. One is the development of new products<\/a>. People look at HECM and say there aren\u2019t as many being made and it doesn\u2019t seem like it\u2019s growing<\/a>. <\/p>\n

But what is growing is the sheer number of products, and usage is really taking off. It\u2019s easy to find HECM numbers but much harder to track proprietary reverse products or loans being sold as retirement mortgage solutions. We\u2019re seeing a significant increase in the usage of reverse mortgages and retirement<\/a> loan strategies. It\u2019s very healthy.<\/p>\n

The second trend is the inclusion of large forward independent mortgage bankers, like Guild. All the major IMBs<\/a> not just sell reverse but have thriving reverse departments. They\u2019re doing things like underwriting and funding their own reverses, and really growing in the space.<\/p>\n

Wolak: Are there specific strategies that are gaining traction?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> One of the latest is second-mortgage strategies \u2014 whether it\u2019s a HELOC<\/a> or a HELOAN. It could be a reverse, meaning no payment and age-based, or something similar to a reverse.<\/p>\n

Also, when people express concern about HECM, I think some of the concern is when you only look at HECMs. I look at it differently. I\u2019m thankful the current administration wants more proprietary lending. It\u2019s not necessarily less FHA, but it\u2019s a better balance between FHA and proprietary lending. That\u2019s exactly what we\u2019re seeing and it\u2019s a good thing for the industry.<\/p>\n

Wolak: Does the growth of larger lenders in the space help address stigmas and preconceived notions borrowers have about reverse mortgages?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> Yes. We\u2019re seeing a lot of growth, and it goes hand in hand with product. At Guild, the goal isn\u2019t just to sell reverse. It\u2019s to present an option to someone. If someone is purchasing<\/a> or looking for a cash-out refi, we\u2019ll give them multiple options. If they\u2019re an elderly American, we\u2019ll present reverse or reverse-like products.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wolak: What is most critical heading into 2026 from a policy standpoint, particularly through your work with NRMLA?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> As co-chair of NRMLA, I\u2019d say a lot of this stems from HUD\u2019s request for information<\/a> last year. NRMLA answered the RFI<\/a>, a lot of other groups did too, and many of the answers seemed to be the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Changes are needed to the mortgage insurance premium structure, especially the upfront MIP, which has stayed the same while lending amounts<\/a> have declined due to higher rates<\/a>. People are paying more upfront for less. There\u2019s probably a better structure out there. <\/p>\n

NRMLA also reinforced the importance of counseling<\/a>. There\u2019s been some turbulence in that area, and we think that counseling with HECMs and reverse mortgages overall, all of the different products require the borrower to be counseled. We think that is just absolutely important \u2014 and for a protected class, that\u2019s really needed.<\/p>\n

NRMLA also talked about indexing to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) instead of the Constant Maturity Treasury (CMT). We also mentioned servicing reform: HUD is currently in the servicing business due to loan assignments, and NRMLA offered HUD a way to get out of the servicing business and keep that servicing with the servicer, which would be less disruptive for the client<\/a> and would alleviate some of those concerns.<\/p>\n

Modernizing the second appraisal process<\/a> is also a big one. On the forward side, you use a collateral underwriter, which analyzes the appraisal and has a couple of different things that basically forces a lender to do, at a minimum, running some automated valuation models (AVMs) and compare it with the collateral underwriter score. <\/p>\n

It could involve a desk review. It could involve a second appraisal, but we find that a second physical appraisal is unnecessary, and is really disruptive and confusing for our senior clients.<\/p>\n

Wolak: What\u2019s the justification for the second appraisal process?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory:<\/strong> The original goal was to address overvaluation<\/a>. The simplest solution was to require a second appraisal. Well, the confusion is now the borrower has two different appraisers come to their house. What if they have totally different opinions of the value? What if they have different opinions as to what repairs<\/a> are required? It just causes concern and confusion for everyone involved.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We did not recommend eliminating it but modernizing it to be similar to the forward side. For example, using a collateral underwriter score or a desk review instead of a second full appraisal.<\/p>\n

Wolak: Are there other areas where reverse could be modernized?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cory: <\/strong>Modernizing financial assessment. For example, you can\u2019t pay off unsecured debt at closing to help a borrower qualify, which we do all day, every day on the forward side. It\u2019s a key component of mortgage lending and it\u2019s not allowed for HECMs. <\/p>\n

In fact, in the 2017 HECM Final Rule<\/a>, it said the FHA commissioner has the authority to allow the payoff of unsecured debt as a mandatory obligation paid at closing, and they never chose to do it. It\u2019s unclear why that isn\u2019t allowed.<\/p>\n

The concern has been that borrowers might run debt back up. I don\u2019t like that argument, because they could do the same thing on the forward side \u2014 and on the forward side, they\u2019ve got a payment to make.<\/p>\n

In reality, reverse borrowers often improve their credit. They get the reverse mortgage, they get cash at closing and they start paying down debt<\/a>. They get rid of high-interest credit card debt. They pay off high-interest installment debt.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As consolidation reshapes the mortgage landscape, Bayview Asset Management\u2019s acquisition of Guild Mortgage is emerging as a case study in how to scale without disruption, particularly in the often-misunderstood reverse mortgage space. In a conversation with HousingWire\u2018s Reverse Mortgage Daily, Jim Cory, managing director of reverse mortgages at Guild Mortgage and co-chair of the board…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48729"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48729"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48729\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}