United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), based in Pontiac, announced Desmond P. Smith as the
company’s chief growth officer. Smith most recently served as senior vice president, chief
customer officer for Single Family Business at Fannie Mae.
In his newly formed role at UWM, Smith will focus on ways to advance and grow the mortgage broker channel. Smith has three decades of experience from his time spent at FHA, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Citi, Capital One Home Loans, and Fannie Mae. This experience will enable him to bring attention to the difference between retail and wholesale lending.
“Desmond is an innovative and thoughtful veteran of the mortgage industry who will bring a unique skillset and background to our team that will allow us to catapult the broker channel forward,” says Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of UWM. “He believes in the wholesale channel and knows first-hand the benefits mortgage brokers bring to borrowers as well as the benefits a loan originator has access to when working at a broker shop.”
He began his time at Fannie Mae leading the East for its top 200 customers. Soon after, he took over all 1,200 customers and was appointed chief customer officer, where he was responsible for everything from origination to servicing.
“I’ve had the privilege of working with many different companies, and I am proud of the impact I was able to make, but when it was time for the next chapter in my career, joining the team at UWM was a no-brainer,” Smith says. “UWM was one of my top customers at Fannie Mae, so I’m very familiar with how they operate and their leaders.”
UWM is a wholesale mortgage lending company based in Pontiac. The company went public in January when it merged with Gores Holdings IV Inc. in Los Angeles.
