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122 At the crux of the conference were two key focus areas—proactive response and collabora- tion. "When crises happen, we must all react quickly and collaboratively to effect change," said Ali Haralson, Chief Business Develop- ment Officer, Auction.com. "is proactive response is in line with the message of PR18: hope and restoration. By convening in Puerto Rico for this important summit, our industry leaders will be bringing visibility to the needs of the island and supporting relief and recovery efforts collectively." e road to recovery for this paradise is a long one indeed, but it is one that the industry is taking action to walk on to restore the island. TEXAS The Equality Affirmation e Texas-based American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC) has formulated a statement of support for industry organiza- tions to sign on, to affirm their commitment to gender equality in the workplace. rough this Statement of Support, the organization is strengthening its commitment to fostering a culture of equality and respect within the mortgage industry. e statement was formulated by AMDC's member organizations and includes issues of pay, advancement and cultivating respectful work cultures. It is driven by four key affirma- tions: 1) Valuing the contributions of all people equally regardless of gender identification or presentation and encouraging equal pay for equal work performed; 2) Conducting periodic reviews across organizations to evaluate pos- sible areas of bias and implement solutions to remove bias if it exists; 3) Supporting gender equality as a strategic objective by promoting opportunities to elevate the female executive population and thereby increasing the rate of retention, recruitment, and advancement of female employees; and 4) Supporting the empowering of emerging female leaders by of- fering development, training, and mentorship programs in strategic operational functions for future opportunities. "e Gender Equality Statement of Sup- port is the product of AMDC member organi- zations standing as one to affirm the funda- mental rights of women in the workplace," said Derek Templeton, Executive Director of the AMDC. "Organizational initiatives in 2019 will focus on continued opportunities to leverage the collective voice of the membership in furtherance of our efforts to foster a culture of diversity and inclusiveness within the mort- gage industry." e statement is already gaining the sup- port of organizations within the mortgage industry, including Aspen Grove Solutions; Beers Housing; Continental Real Estate Services; Doonan, Graves & Longoria, LLC; First Allegiance; Five Brothers; e Five Star Institute; Folks Hess Kass; JGM Property Group; Landmark Network; Laudan Proper- ties; National Tax Search; Strategic Venture Partners; SVN AuctionWorks; and Wright, Finlay & Zak. Mr. Cooper's Eventful Quarter Q 3 was a busy quarter for Dallas-based Mr. Cooper Group. e company, which operates mainly as Mr. Cooper and Xome, saw $64 million in predecessor GAAP losses in Q 3 and $1 billion in successor GAAP income. Altogether, that brought Mr. Cooper Group to $54 million in adjusted income during the quarter in which the company rebranded itself and completed a big merger. "is was an extraordinary quarter for our company," said Jay Bray, Chairman and CEO of Mr. Cooper Group Inc. "We completed the WMIH Corp. merger and renamed the company. We've made strides in all our busi- ness segments." e merger was the acquisition of Assurant Mortgage Solutions (Xome), which Bray said increased Xome's profitability by 56 percent in the quarter. at was due to steady income in the originations side. In its Q 3 report, the company also an- nounced that it is working out the acquisition of Pacific Union Financial. "We believe this acquisition is complemen- tary to our business and significantly increases our originations volume and capabilities," Bray said. "Subject to regulatory approvals, the transaction will also allow us to grow our servicing portfolio by approximately $25 billion upon closing in early 2019." e company's servicing business earned $81 million in combined adjusted pretax income, or 6.5 basis points of adjusted profit- ability in Q 3. Combined adjusted pre-tax profitability improved 12 percent from the prior quarter, while expenses improved by $9 million, according to the report. e company said that was primarily due to a decrease in interest expense related to MSR financing and higher float income. Mr. Cooper boarded $37 billion UPB in the quarter to close the third quarter servicing portfolio at $514 billion UPB. at puts the company on track to reach its goal of 5 percent growth for the year, with an expectation to end the year at $535 billion UPB. Mr. Cooper remains confident in achieving adjusted servicing profitability in excess of 6.0 basis points on average for the full year 2018 which will be propelled by a lower prepayment environment and continued efficiencies. Originations earned $33 million in com- bined adjusted pretax income in Q 3, mainly due to gain on sale revenue, the report stated. e company claimed nearly 23,000 loans in the third quarter, totaling approximately $5.1 billion UPB. About $2.4 billion came from the consumer-direct channel and $2.7 billion from the correspondent channel. In the consumer- direct channel, refinance recapture increased 8 percent quarter-over-quarter to 57 percent. e correspondent channel has grown over the past year making Mr. Cooper the 10th largest correspondent lender in the U.S. e report also stated that Xome "will continue to focus on the AMS integration and transformation throughout 2019, and expects to fully ramp up the capture of Mr. Cooper's field services opportunities by mid-2019." Texas is the most veteran- friendly city according to a "Best & Worst Places for Veterans to Live" report by WalletHub. KNOW THIS

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