June 23, 2008 11:35 AM

Solera's "odd timing"

We carried a brief item last week about startup Solera National Bank striking a deal to allow Countrywide Financial the right to offer mortgage products from Solera's offices.

While the Rocky gave the deal a few sentences, trade publication American Banker did a full article about the deal, kicking it off with the sentence "Talk about odd timing."

Odd timing because Countrywide is the scandal-ridden poster child for the housing collapse? Well, no - odd because Countrywide is selling itself to Bank of America in a deal scheduled to close July 1. Bank of America intends to eliminate the Countywide brand, and it doesn't have any existing deal where Bank of America-branded products are sold in other banks.

Solera CEO Paul Ferguson told American Banker that since BofA doesn't have branches in Colorado, he doesn't see it as a competitor. Fair enough.

American Banker says it remains to be seen whether Solera will have to terminate the deal and find another lender. (No link to the article, because American Banker limits its Web site to subscribers.) It notes that First National Bank of the Rockies in Grand Junction also has a joint venture with Countrywide.

"We aren't going to have First National Bank of the Rockies Mortgage Powered by Bank of America, I can tell you that," Bruce Penny, First National's chief credit officer, told American Banker.

Posted by David Milstead at 11:35 AM | Comments (3)