Correspondent Lender

Correspondent Lender

A lender who delivers loans to another (usually larger) lender against prior price commitments the larger lender has made to the correspondent.

Mortgage brokers sometimes evolve into correspondent lenders when they accumulate enough capital to acquire the credit lines needed to close loans in their own names. But correspondents continue to depend on commitments from other lenders to protect them against the risk that market prices will decline while they are holding loans. See Mortgage Lender/Retail, Wholesale, and Correspondent Lenders.