NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch Ratings has affirmed Wells Fargo Bank's (WFB) U.S. residential master servicer rating at 'RMS1', Stable Outlook.
The rating affirmation reflects updates to Fitch's master servicer rating criteria published in April 2015, which takes into consideration the master servicer's effectiveness and operational capacity, servicer oversight, and data management.
WFB has continued to strengthen its master servicing capabilities through the addition of experienced senior management, increased automation covering servicer reporting and remittance procedures, enhanced servicer oversight procedures, and its event of default (EOD) servicer transition planning. In addition, the master servicer has enhanced cross-training among its staff and standardized several procedures to improve primary servicer validation processes.
The rating also takes into consideration the ultimate parent's, Wells Fargo & Company (WFC), corporate governance structure and financial strength (rated 'AA-', Outlook Stable by Fitch on May 19, 2015).
WFB has been providing master servicing since 1988 which forms part of the Corporate Trust Services (CTS) under the wholesale banking division of WFC. CTS has approximately 2,300 full-time equivalents (FTEs), covering over 16 million loans for approximately $2.7 trillion. The master servicing operation has 263 dedicated FTEs and utilizes some shared services through CTS. During Fitch's review period, WFB, in its role as master servicer, boarded 39 new private RMBS transactions, involving approximately 17,500 loans totaling $12 billion in unpaid principal balance.
WFB is a diversified financial services company providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 9,000 locations and 12,000 ATMs and the Internet across North America and internationally, and acts as certificate administrator and trustee for CMBS, GNMA, ABS and MBS securitizations, as well as municipal single-family and multifamily housing transactions.
WFB's master servicing operations are headquartered in Columbia, MD, with additional sites in Houston, TX and Minneapolis, MN. As of June 30, 2015, WFB master serviced 1,431,500 loans totaling $276.4 billion; this was down from 1,527,164 loans totaling $294.2 billion as of the previous review period. The portfolio consisted of 1,050,626 non-agency RMBS loans totaling $232.9 billion and 380,874 other loans totaling $43.5 billion.
Fitch rates residential mortgage primary, master, and special servicers on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the highest rating. Within some of these rating levels, Fitch further differentiates ratings by plus (+) and minus (-) as well as the flat rating. For more information on Fitch's residential servicer rating program, please see Fitch's report 'Rating U.S. Residential and Small Balance Commercial Mortgage Servicer Rating Criteria', dated April 23, 2015 which is available on the Fitch Ratings web site at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
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