HousingWireHousingWire
Rocket Companies, traditionally known for its call center model, is diversifying its channel strategy amid its deals to acquire Redfin and Mr. Cooper, according to Chief Operating Officer Heather Lovier.
“When we think about how we’re diversifying, obviously, Rocket is very consumer-direct — we have our direct-to-consumer channel. But we’re also diversifying in the field through our brokers as well as our local loan officers, and we’ll be able to add to that through the Redfin acquisition as well here very soon,” Lovier said on stage during the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Secondary and Capital Markets Conference in New York on Tuesday.
In March, Rocket struck a deal to acquire digital real estate brokerage firm Redfin for $1.75 billion, bringing in its distributed retail arm, Bay Equity Home Loans. This isn’t the first time Rocket has engaged with local loan officers. In 2023, the company ramped up efforts to hire remote LOs to boost purchase activity, as HousingWire reported — a move later confirmed by a company executive.
According to Lovier, Rocket aims to meet clients wherever they are in their homeownership journey.
“We have just recently regionalized inside our consumer direct space to make sure that the loan officers who are working with clients who want to communicate in a digital format can do that, but also, they are the experts,” Lovier said.
While having LOs licensed in 25 states is great for scale, Lovier noted that a more localized approach is critical for the home-buying process — especially in providing a single point of contact to serve both clients and real estate agents.
“We have about 2,200 agents at Redfin that we’ll be working closely with, but we’ve also built many relationships that we need to continue fostering. We want to ensure we’re supporting them in the right zip codes, at the right time, with the right knowledge — so that everyone can feel confident with that single point of contact as they move forward,” Lovier said.
Regarding Rocket’s deal to acquire Mr. Cooper, Lovier said the move strengthens the company’s recapture capabilities. For Rocket TPO — its broker channel — the focus is on ensuring that brokers have the tools they need. In April, Rocket took a major step by integrating with ARIVE, a leading software platform used by mortgage brokers.
Overall, Lovier emphasized that getting a mortgage is one of the biggest financial transactions a person can make, yet the process remains fragmented — from searching for a home to securing financing.
“Obviously, servicing follows suit, but we’re really trying to support the homeownership journey from beginning to end,” Lovier said. “Some of the acquisitions that we’ve made are very specific to that goal. We’ve tried to build some of it ourselves — and we realized that other players are better at certain pieces. That’s why bringing our companies together to complete the homeownership journey is so important to us.”
