WAL in the News

 Western Alliance to Acquire AmeriHome, a Leading National B2B Mortgage Acquirer & Servicer

Feb 16, 2021

Extends WAL’s National Commercial Bank Strategy with correspondent mortgage platform that enhances growth, returns and diversification

Financially compelling; produces over 30% EPS and 500 bps ROATCE accretion in 2022E

Robust capital generation profile; TBVPS earnback in less than one year

Diversifies revenue profile; markedly increases fee revenue to total revenue mix

Deploys excess liquidity into higher yielding, low credit risk assets

Augments stable funding; increases access to growing, low-cost, low-beta core deposits

Facilitates complementary, balanced business mix; positions WAL for continued growth and consistent returns across cycles

Strong cultural fit and continuity of highly experienced leadership team minimizes operational and execution risk

 

PHOENIX -- Western Alliance Bancorporation (“Western Alliance”) (NYSE: WAL) today announced the execution of a definitive agreement to acquire Aris Mortgage Holding Company, LLC, the parent company of AmeriHome Mortgage Company, LLC (“AmeriHome”) for an estimated purchase price of $1.0 billion in cash, subject to adjustments at closing.

AmeriHome brings a B2B approach to the mortgage ecosystem through its relationships with over 700 independent correspondent mortgage originator clients, including independent mortgage bankers, community and regional banks, and credit unions of all sizes. Based in Thousand Oaks, CA, AmeriHome is the nation’s third largest correspondent mortgage acquirer, purchasing approximately $65 billion in conventional conforming and government insured originations during 2020 from its network of independent mortgage originators and managing a $99 billion mortgage servicing portfolio, as of December 31, 2020.

For Western Alliance, the addition of AmeriHome extends its national commercial businesses with a complementary, low-risk national mortgage franchise. AmeriHome’s combination of business model, diversified and complementary channels, and sophisticated portfolio management strategies has successfully generated consistent and profitable returns throughout rate environments and economic cycles. The transaction also markedly increases the contribution from non-interest income sources. From a financial perspective, the transaction is estimated to produce accretion of over 30% to EPS and over 500 basis points to return on average tangible common equity in 2020.

“We look forward to maximizing the strategic and financial opportunities created by partnering with AmeriHome, which has been a valued client of Western Alliance Bank for years,” said Ken Vecchione, President and Chief Executive Officer of Western Alliance. “Acquiring this differentiated, high-performing mortgage platform provides a powerful growth engine and expands mortgage offerings to existing clients that give us flexible levers to drive consistent returns throughout market cycles. AmeriHome’s effective business model and exceptional leadership team will leverage Western Alliance’s liquidity and capital strength, market reach, complementary businesses and commercial customers. This move meaningfully enhances our EPS baseline and growth, diversifies our revenue mix, and mitigates business cycle volatility with a firm that augments our commercial-focused portfolio.”

Post-closing, AmeriHome will operate under its current brand, AmeriHome, a Western Alliance Bank company, and will continue to be led by Jim Furash, its current President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Joining Western Alliance Bank is a terrific opportunity to accelerate our own strategic objectives and pathway to growth, with an outstanding partner we know very well,” said Jim Furash. “AmeriHome’s successful results and unique business model proved to be highly attractive for Western Alliance Bank, which has a history of growing by adding specialized financing groups that excel through differentiated B2B expertise and strong client service. It’s a great match.”

Under the terms of the agreement, AmeriHome will become a subsidiary of Western Alliance Bank. Western Alliance will pay cash consideration of $275 million plus adjusted tangible book value at closing for an estimated aggregate consideration of $1.0 billion (based on AmeriHome’s December 31, 2020 results). Western Alliance expects to achieve annual after-tax funding cost synergies of approximately $50 million with total estimated after-tax merger and integration costs of approximately $27 million. The purchase price represents approximately 1.4x adjusted tangible book value based on December 31, 2020 financials and is estimated to create modest dilution to Western Alliance’s tangible book value per share that we expect to earn back in less than one year. Before the end of the second quarter of 2021, Western Alliance intends to raise approximately $275 million of primary capital through a registered public offering of common stock to support the transaction and future growth. The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter of 2021, subject to customary closing terms and conditions. After closing of the transaction, Western Alliance plans to optimize the acquired mortgage servicing rights assets for both ongoing operations and regulatory capital treatment.

Evercore and Guggenheim Securities, LLC are serving as financial advisors to Western Alliance. Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP is serving as legal advisor to Western Alliance. Houlihan Lokey Capital, Inc. and Wells Fargo Securities, LLC acted as financial advisors to AmeriHome on the transaction. Sidley Austin LLP acted as legal advisor to AmeriHome on the transaction.

Conference Call and Webcast

Western Alliance Bancorporation will host a conference call and live webcast to discuss the transaction at 5:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 16, 2021. Participants may access the call by dialing 1-888-317-6003 and using the participant code 6598631 or via live audio webcast using the website link https://services.choruscall.com/links/wal210216.html. The webcast is also available via the Company’s website at www.westernalliancebancorporation.com. Participants should log in at least 15 minutes early to receive instructions. The call will be recorded and made available for replay after 2:00 p.m. ET February 17 through 9:00 a.m. ET March 16 by dialing 1-877-344-7529, using the participant code 10152528.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

With more than $35 billion in assets, Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE: WAL) is one of the country’s top-performing banking companies. The company was #1 best-performing of the 50 largest public U.S. banks in the most recent S&P Global Market Intelligence listing and ranks high on the Forbes “Best Banks in America” list year after year. Its primary subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, Member FDIC, helps business clients realize their ambitions with teams of experienced bankers who deliver superior service and a full spectrum of customized loan, deposit and treasury management capabilities. Business clients also benefit from a powerful array of specialized financial services that provide strong expertise and tailored solutions for a wide variety of industries and sectors. Serving clients across the country wherever business happens, Western Alliance Bank operates individually branded, full-service banking divisions and has offices in key markets nationwide. For more information, visit westernalliancebank.com.

About AmeriHome Mortgage Company, LLC

Founded in 2013, and based in Thousand Oaks, CA, AmeriHome is a leading U.S. residential mortgage acquirer and servicer focused on driving profitable growth across market environments. The firm operates three complementary business segments: Correspondent, Consumer Direct and Servicing. It ranked as the third largest correspondent producer of mortgages and the 13th largest producer of mortgages overall in the U.S. during 2020. AmeriHome has created a flexible and scalable platform with a modern, purpose-built technology infrastructure, advanced data and analytics capabilities, all leveraging the management team's collective experience to achieve a highly efficient cost structure to target profitability in all market environments. AmeriHome has a track record of consistent, prudent and profitable growth, having expanded its production volume from $18.7 billion in 2015 to $64.5 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2020 and its servicing portfolio from $18.9 billion to $98.8 billion as of December 31, 2020. For more information, visit amerihome.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements that relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans and strategies, anticipated events or trends and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about (i) the benefits of the Merger between Western Alliance and Aris Mortgage Holding Company, LLC (“Aris”), including future financial and operating results, cost savings, enhancements to revenue and accretion to reported earnings that may be realized from Western Alliance’s acquisition of AmeriHome, Aris’ wholly-owned subsidiary; (ii) expected capital raising activities (iii) objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements contained in this presentation that are not historical facts; and (iv) other statements identified by words such as “may,” “assumes,” “approximately,” “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “targets,” “projects,” or words of similar meaning generally intended to identify forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the management of Western Alliance and are inherently subject to significant business, economic, and competitive uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of Western Alliance. In addition, these forward- looking statements are subject to various risks, uncertainties and assumptions with respect to future business strategies and decisions that are subject to change and difficult to predict with regard to timing, extent, likelihood and degree of occurrence. As a result, actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results discussed in these forward-looking statements because of possible uncertainties. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements:

the businesses of Western Alliance and AmeriHome may not be combined successfully, or such combination may take longer, be more difficult, time-consuming or costly to accomplish than expected;

the expected growth opportunities, accretion or cost savings from Western Alliance’s acquisition of AmeriHome may not be fully realized or may take longer to realize than expected;

operating costs and business disruption following the Merger may be greater than expected;

federal antitrust review and state licensing regulatory and other approvals required for consummation of the Merger may not be obtained or completed on the anticipated schedule, on the proposed terms or at all;

the ability of Western Alliance to complete a capital raising transaction to support the Merger and future growth on terms, conditions, and pricing it deems satisfactory;

the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on Western Alliance, AmeriHome, and their respective customers, employees and third-party service providers; and the other factors that may affect future results of Western Alliance and AmeriHome discussed in Western Alliance’s reports (such as Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K) and AmeriHome’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 (as amended) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Any forward-looking statement made in this release is based only on information currently available to us and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. We do not intend to have and disclaim any duty or obligation to update or revise any industry information or forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, set forth in this release to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

https://www.westernalliancebancorporation.com/news/western-alliance-to-acquire-amerihome

Deals

Western Alliance Buys Apollo-Backed AmeriHome for $1 Billion

By 

Shahien Nasiripour

February 16, 2021, 1:23 PM PST Updated on February 16, 2021, 2:25 PM PST

Western Alliance Bancorporation is buying the mortgage company AmeriHome for about $1 billion in cash, as the pandemic housing boom in the U.S. fuels industry consolidation.

Western Alliance has reached an agreement to purchase Aris Mortgage Holding Company, the parent company of California-based AmeriHome, according to a statement on Tuesday.

AmeriHome, which counts an affiliate of Apollo Global Management as its controlling shareholder, confidentially filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission to go public in August.

It announced plans to sell 14.7 million shares for $16 to $18 apiece, which would have raised as much as $265 million. That plan was subsequently delayed amid turbulence in mortgage and equity markets.

The deal with Western Alliance comes after the mortgage industry posted a banner year, boosted by historically low mortgage rates that have fueled demand for homes and refinancing.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/western-alliance-buys-amerihome-for-1-billion-in-mortgage-deal

After 157 days self quarantined, I'm working in mortgage again... I got a job.

Working under a clerical contract as a supervisor for USCIS where there were people with 20, even 30+ years tenure more than me should have been a big, bright flashing neon sign that I wouldn't stay for long. I was a federal contractor there for two CAPS and three different employers and then the SCOSS contract flipped to new companies. Then I was hired back as a temp (in reserve for a supervisor position, but working for the senior analyst). I found another job before they gave me the boot at the 6-month mark.

And then Coronavirus struck. And they just started to implement the new seating arrangement when I quit on March 16th. And then my new employer said, "don't come in" and rescinded their offer.

I was out of work for a total of 157 days. It took me a month to get hired on at my new job. I started to look hard in July because I did not want to be without a job by the time my unemployment insurance ran out.

I'm working in a newly expanded post-closing department. The tasks are nothing new to me though and I'm getting to learn Encompass which seems to be a skill every employer is looking for these days. And the best part it's 5 miles away from home and it's a open schedule as long as I work 8 hours and get my work done.

Where's the money? Is it coming??

If you are unemployed in California...

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/unemployment-checks-with-600-boost-rolling-out-this-week/2272524/

So it's supposed to be your UI award plus $600 per week for four months.

My max award started on 3/22/2020.

About the federal stimulus check:

https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/economic-impact-payments

A one-time payment of $1200 for single status filers, no dependents. My son's father owes me back child support so his federal stim money is supposed to go to me, even if he considers himself disabled. We'll see how that plays out.

Today is day 26 staying at home with no job and I've seen no money yet. I mean, I'm marking it on my calendar each morning.

Turning Left or Right?

Driving towards Los Angeles, if you take the 22 West exit with the intention of going into Long Beach near Alamitos Bay, the first exit is Studebaker to the right and then you turn left. At the end of Studebaker, you come to 2nd Street. You can't drive forward anymore because there is no more road. It's a fenced-off field of scrub, weeds and random palm trees next to the San Gabriel River Wash that leads out to the Pacific. In order to continue your trip, you have to make a decision: turn left or right.

And I find this is kind of a parallel story to what my life is like right now. I worked in finance and in the mortgage industry. I  took a road that was different, working in the file room as a contractor/Supervisor for a year and a half at USCIS, but it was at the end of that organization's five- year contract, really due to no fault of my own and just shear decisions to retain those with the more tenure, I came to its intersection in the last week of  November of last year when I was laid off for a brief moment.  I have to think that it was my boss that saved me from the unemployment rolls temporarily for another 6 months due to others retiring and moving on to other more permanent roles at USCIS in Adjudication, Naturalization, and Asylum. (And I'm not convinced in the least that his subordinate was enthused about any of these changes/decisions in the least. Which is an entirely another discussion I won't get into now.) I thought I was going to go drive down a different road turning left or right which I was OK with, but I  also came to terms with the fact that I knew my health was paramount, so work gave me this shitty narrow path with a significant pay cut and what I find out now is crappier health insurance coverage (worse than I even had when I paid for it myself on the CA Healthcare Exchange) to keep traveling on their path. Don't think that I'm not grateful, I am, I just don't like what I've become at this point and I have no control over it. My boss does. Until the end of the contract or until I get a better job, whichever comes first.

It's the beginning of March and I want this to be over on my terms and not be laid off on May 2nd. I've been applying to jobs that pay more than what I'm earning now just to have the satisfaction and be able to say that," I'll be O.K... my new job pays more than this place", and to build up my self-confidence knowing that I've made changes mid-career and have come back from being jobless before and I can do it again.

At this point in my life though, I'm fairly cynical and retrospective about work which doesn't really help and the economy is one that has tamped down on hourly wages hard. I've sat on the other side of that hiring desk trying to figure out how well that candidate can fill the role. Do you pick someone with a degree who had never did the role before and train or do you hire someone with experience and pay for it? The decision is out of my hands.

And I'm wary about recruiters. The last time I got involved with one of those,  I took a job in Simi Valley as a federal contractor to Fannie Mae right after Countrywide defaulted and Bank of America was buying them but not before the credit crunch of Oct '08. It was a strange time to be where I was and watch it all happen.

I've been contacted by no less than three recruiters. None of the first two seem sustaining. The third one is intriguing, but can I make that hard left turn and continue on?

May 6th, 2019 Day Dreaming

I woke up from a 30-minute power nap and in that between space between sleeping and being fully awake, I saw something in my minds eye. I saw a group of people, teenagers, kids, young adults, mulling about in an office space and they were all wearing these black winter coats with hoods and with a little black rectangle patch on the arm that said 360(degree symbol). And I kept looking around to this group asking, "Do you speak English?" and "Do you know English?" There was one large, tall man in a blue or black business jacket standing, hovering over them with kinda short curly black hair a small mustache and a flat football player looking face, little expression. Maybe he was Security and standing by the double doors? And then I said, " You need to go to the mall."

I have no idea where this dream came from other than the fact that I've been looking for another job on the usajobs.gov website and one of the security guards told me to apply to an office that is no where near where I currently live.

Christ, January is almost over...Happy 2019

I had to work on December 31st, so last year's New Year's Eve was a non-event. The closest I got to a celebratory mood was saying to my staff "Happy New Year" as we all exited the building at 11:30PM. I worked so hard in January that when MLK Day rolled around, I didn't even recognize it as a day I got off work for a hot minute.

I bought rocks for painting and a new rosemary plant to replace the last one that I had for years. I'm going to plant that in the one medium planter/pot and the other with basil. Or maybe I'll move the onions into a pot this year. Last year's cherry tomato self-seeded and I currently have a hedge of chinka cherry tomatoes. It's spectacular. Best this plant has ever looked.

I decided this Spring is the time to go get my mortgage refi in order. I need to get the place all spiffy before the appraiser gets here. So I'm doing things like completing the LVP floor project for the two closets that I didn't do. FINALLY painting my bathroom. Throwing away the broken cheap ass mirror over the sofa and putting up a more stylish one I found at Target with a shelf. Have to paint the living room and the kitchen. All of this so I can get a chunk of the equity out of my home to get two windows, two patio sliders installed, maybe a new kitchen and bath remodels and pay off some bills. But because we've lived here since 1999, it's a cluttered mess. Not packrat, hoarder type piles, just little piles of stuff that need to go be donated, better organized if it's going to stay or put away.

The idea to get all this stuff done in a reasonable amount of time for this professed procrastinator is a simple one. I know I'll be financially in a better place and I'm using the following to keep me on track and motivated each day:

> Clean one thing;
> Fix one thing;
> Put away or organize one thing; and
> Donate one thing I don't need or want anymore.

Stephen's closet took 3 days for the floor during the week and yesterday, I went to Home Depot and bought the baseboard moulding. After I made my purchase, and with the molding in my hands on the way to the car. some random guy was laughing at me in the parking lot about getting that moulding home. Umm, yeah, 9 ft of moulding fits in my car with the back passenger seat down, thankyouverymuch. That's why I cut it that length. Jerk.

The fig tree that once seemed like a miracle when it popped up growing in my #1 raised planter box is now a nuisance. Between Winter, the rain and the wind, it looks like shit and from what I read it takes a year to get figs from it if the birds and rats don't get them first. At one point I saw two on there, but that was months ago and I didn't attend to the fruit to keep it for myself I mean atleast grow it because I can't eat seeds anymore. So really what's the point of keeping the fig tree, right? So I'm planning on cutting it down and/or digging it out.

Bye Bye November, Hello December!

There are three-four things I used to look forward to in November. Two holidays where I had the day off of work, my dad's birthday and black Friday.

Under the government contract I work for, I don't get Veteran's Day as a Federal holiday? Who screwed up that one? Not me. The building was closed and I had to either work at home or mark off one of my vacation days to get paid. I chose the later.

Thanksgiving was so weird this year. It was the first year in which my son was the one working in the day and I was working at night. And because of that, our schedules weren't synced up and when I got up the next day after working until midnight, I was hungry for breakfast at 10AM. So I made ham and eggs. And then I started cooking the Thanksgiving meal soon after so it was done at around 2PM. Neither I nor my son was hungry at that time, so I packed it up to be placed in the refrigerator. We grazed on Thanksgiving foodstuffs for about 4 days until it was all gone.

I had to work on black Friday and I wasn't really in the shopping mood. If there is actually a shopping mood. Whatever that's supposed to feel like. But still, I know that it is gift giving season so I need to buy something for someone.

At work, we organized two potlucks...one at Halloween and another right before Thanksgiving. The first one I ate some Vietnamese food and it did a number on my guts so I was running to the restroom for nearly half of the shift. I don't know if it was because it was greasy food, or just ingredients that my guys just don't digest any more or the fact that it sat out for hours before we ate. Maybe it was a combination of the three, but anyways, I felt horrible after that, so when Thanksgiving time rolled around and them the team were asking was it O.K. with me to have a potluck again, I was like yeah, it's OK, but it's too much food for me right before Thanksgiving, so you guys go ahead and I'll just eat my dinner (whatever I brought that day. I've been eating fruit for dinner because that's what I can tolerate.... like banana or orange or peach. Apples anymore are too fibrous.)

I had a somewhat strange conversation with my manager on Thursday. You see, each day I'm getting feedback to relay to the team and I'm supposed to be tracking all of it on a spreadsheet so we agreed on Thursday, but then she told me with the volume of work going through the team the number of problems is expected. But it just makes me feel bad that we are having any at all and I told her it felt like, "What now?" and a stab in the heart when she does it. Because maybe I expect more of myself and the team. But anyway, she asked me if I had any questions, and I said we get all these emails asking for help finding stuff and I don't know where to go or even start to look so I feel like the "dots are not connecting". And then she tells me that the first shift supervisors she leans on hard which is kinda baffling to me because the manager has been there for over 10 years and the supervisor has been there for just 5. So what is really going on here and how is it that a clerk turned supervisor gets all these knowledge and not the manager? Blah Blah Blah work, right? Anyway, I'm supposed to have yet another scheduled training session with the first shift supervisor for a week this time to see if I can get the dots that I'm missing. But now I'm thinking that if I'm missing this training, that they didn't follow through with the last training plan, that maybe I should be putting the trainer on notice instead. Otherwise, my relationship with the first shift supervisor might deteriorate.

And now it's December. So I went on Facebook this weekend, the first weekend of December to find out that The Alley is closing. And it's not an unexpected closing, because the pattern of what was happening with the store, but it's sad. The two generation family that ran it once, is retiring, so it's going away. The last store is in Indio or Palms Springs. And it made me thought of the fact that when I went to their store when the closest one to me as in Rancho Cucamonga, I picked up a business card while I was making a purchase. And I had that business card in a pile of other business cards in one of the desk drawers where I have my computer stationed. So I pulled out the pile of cards and went through them because it was OK that I threw away the card to The Alley because that was a store that was going out of business. I actually threw a bunch of them away until I came to one from Peer Development.

I acquired that business card from a guy I dated briefly in 2005? His life was in flux after a divorce, I remember mine was in flux, but don't remember the event other than I thought it was around the same time when my dad died. I googled his name from time to time thinking he died because the excuse he gave me to get out of our relationship was that his lung cancer metastasized and he was selling his house and moving after a nasty divorce, blah blah blah his drama. But I remember years later he calls up at home and I said I thought you were dead, and he asks me about a 3-some out of the blue says his receptionist is a fat slob and doesn't look as good as me. What? Yeah, that's men in a nutshell right there. Women want substance and to be taken care of and to get a feeling of security and men want good looks and somewhere in the process time, aging and the lack of motivation and energy fucks that all up. And at that time I told him to lose my number and never call me again. So yeah, I find his business card and I googled his name and low and behold he didn't die (so was his cancer story all a lie?). It seems he may have burned his bridge in the commercial restaurant remodeling biz, as well as mine, and moved on to people's homes and did a crap ass job of that because there are these reports online that people want to sue him for the lack of quality in the jobs that were performed. I had to laugh because he never did any of the work himself. He had a group of Mexicans working for him for cash probably, I don't know for sure. They painted his home before it was sold and rented back to him. Years later, I remember seeing that someone was shot dead at the same address he used to live at. And I'm thinking that place had bad karma - juju. It just always felt cold and never homey. Maybe that was just the bad energy left over from his divorce in the house. So do I want to track this guy down? No, not in the least seeing all the stuff written about him after I gave him up for dead but isn't it interesting to see the wormhole you can go down just by one doing inquiry on the internet from finding an old business card.

You know the good thing about December, besides Christmas and New Years Day? December 21st or there abouts is the Winter Equinox. The day with the shortest daylight. It only gets brighter longer from there, baby. It's the upswing for spring and summer. And that day is almost exciting to me as Christmas. 19 dark days and counting.

Job Progress Report 3/16

I'm two weeks into a contractor position and I'm loving it. I'm back in to file room operations and supervision. The big project drops in another two weeks. It's what I was hired for and they allowed me to start early during to ramp up.

Earlier this year, a colleague reminded me that one of my goals was to become the county recorder. Isn't it interesting that others sometimes hold you more accountable than maybe you do yourself.

A great article about foreclosure and how it effected one family in Southern California...

A great article about foreclosure and how it effected one family in Southern California...

The Never Ending Foreclosure

I'm O.K.

Reading this made me feel a little bit better about my decision to quit AAG back in March. 

Serious Boss Advice

I'm not an expert communicator, but I felt something was wrong and that I needed to move away from that feeling. I'm glad I left.

This Weekend in Uber for Moi

Trip Log:
*Saturday*
06/11 - Tustin to Tustin
06/11 - Tustin to Tustin (Swinging Door)
06/11 - Had to cancel a ride because it was ordered 5 hours before the arrival time. On the news this weekend, Uber advertised that they have started to schedule pick-ups in advance, but this feature has not been rolled out in the OC Market yet. Refunded rider.
06/11 - UCI to Turtle Rock
06/11 - Irvine to SNA
06/11 - Irvine to Irvine (Chili's)

(break/bought groceries and went home)[99 Ranch Market]


*Sunday*
06/12 - Santa Ana to Irvine
06/12 - Irvine to LAX
(Note: Make airport/terminal maps for SNA and LAX to keep in the car + the staging maps on where to park.)
... got gas at Costco in Hawthorne and drove back to OC
06/12 - Santa Ana TS to Newport Beach (Stag Bar + Kitchen)
(Note: Get a regular local taxi number for those people who only have cash.[Unrelated note to the drop off above but rather someone who needed a ride.])

(break/bought groceries and went home)[Grocery Warehouse]

06/12 - Tustin to Anaheim (Downtown Disney)
06/12 - tried a pick-up on Harbor Blvd, but there is no place to stop or park and the rider wasn't ready, so I canceled. Hated to do that because anywhere around Disney is a perpetual surge spot. And I get why with the crush of people, it can make it extremely hard to locate the rider!
06/12 - Garden Grove to Garden Grove
06/12 - Santa Ana to Laguna Beach

...and then my cell phone ran out of power! Arg! So I went home, made dinner and called it a night.

Blog Entry:
This was the first weekend I drove and it was also the weekend that the UCI students were moving out of their dorms and three of the riders I picked up had something to do with that, so it was a good thing that I drive a small SUV because they were able to load up everything and go.

Uber is also a great way to get to where you want to get your drink on and get home without having to chance it and get caught driving under the influence.

Fancy That

So this week, I'm emerging from a period of mourning over the loss of my uncle after having attended his memorial and getting back into town from being in New York for a week. I didn't feel like I was able to go through the grieving process for him while stressed out over my job, so it might have been a good thing that I separated when I did so I could go through and get through what I felt I needed to do in dealing with his passing. Now that I'm feeling better about it, ...

I've got to get a job. Or at least some money going. It's been a little over two months since I've had a paycheck. Going to check out Uber and see what that's all about. But in the meantime...

Even though I've previously sworn off pursuing the music scene like I used to, I'm getting into one band that sparked my attention from the Alt radio channel on SiriusXM - The Struts, and I could just kick myself that I missed going to their concert at the Observatory in Santa Ana on 03/29/16. Probably won't ever see $16 tickets for their shows after again after all their touring all over the world.

And in getting acquainted with said band, today, I was perusing the videos they have posted on Youtube.com and I have come to the realization that the one song that has captured my attention on the radio, i.e. "Kiss This", sounds familiar. Really, really familiar.

Listen, I'm no expert, but I am almost twice as old as some members of the band and as time is on my side with regards to a larger catalog of music that I've been exposed to, I couldn't help but searching for the song that sounds, in part, like theirs.

In doing so, I reacquainted myself with the goings on with the popular Swedish duo Roxette. Sadly, their lead singer made the hard choice to cancel the remaining tour in Australia due to the further breakdown of her body after having a brain tumor (see: Roxette Makes a Tough Decision to Quit Tour). At least we have the wonderful catalog of music from the band that spans from late the 1980's to 2016, which is when their last album was released.

When Roxette was first making the charts in the U.S. in , one of their most popular songs was titled "She's Got The Look", or some would just call the song "The Look".

I can even can hear that the phrasing tempo seems similar, even though the actual lyrics are different.

Now, only copyright lawyers and royalty trackers have the ability to sort  out these things out in a court of law if it has to come to that, but there have been recent settlements out of court in the news for this very same thing. See:  https://www.buzzfeed.com/

Now listen to both for yourself and you decide.

And then recently, I found this posted on Variety:
http://variety.com/2016/music/news/ed-sheeran-sued-copyright-photograph-x-factor-1201791603/

My feeling better, less stressful, enjoying Good Friday because I quit my job yesterday life in Orange County!

There are ways to leave a job gracefully and then there are sometimes when you have to save yourself and just walk away. Yesterday, I quit after 6 months.

My accomplishments: I hired 3, fired 1, promoted 2, trained 3. I recognized gross risk issues surrounding safekeeping of original notes in case binders and had purchased fire-proof cabinets for storage. I wrote the compliance draft for safekeeping records... because they didn't have one. I suggested an electronic key card for the file storage room when I first arrived, but I was told it was too expensive. Once the new CRO was hired, it's back on the table, but with a wood door... to save money - so clueless. I started a collateral workbench project to take the #1 funder of reverse mortgages off of spreadsheets to track collateral prep between funding and shipping. I started the discussion about record retention and found out the table was out of date and they were sited for it at least once. BCP is out of date 3 years. I started to work on MERS 3 weeks ago after a visit from the relationship manager, and come to find out no reconciliation of the rejects, warnings, RI and RH reports have been done for years.( Probably since Margarita Harrison left the department. Last year, I found her at Carrington supervising a group of reviewers recertifying B of A Ginnie Mae correspondent collateral after B of A publically got slapped on the hand by Ginnie Mae for non-compliance.) I started to socialise the fact that they don't have to pay for registering mini-corr loans in MERS because the company not only has to pay the registration fee but puts them on the hook also for the MERS compliance. I organized the MERS project. I gained control over the MERS training and MERS production accounts. I set-up the security correctly and reactivated the secure questions. I created collateral qa check sheets for retail, wholesale and Advantage lines of business because again... they had none. I revised the hoc shipping desktop procedures. I ordered more carts to move files traveling through three floors of office space. My group took in processing collateral for the Wholesale group, including correspondent and mini corr (PA) loans. I enforced the clean desk policy in the suite. I gained control over the Iron Mtn account. I stabilized the file storage data and archived data for loan files stored at Iron Mountain. I collaborated across departments - with Facilities to promote safety and security, with File Management to reconcile workbenches and missing documents from the loan file, with funding to ID, log and deliver closing packaged and follow-up docs to the funders daily.

I learned what a HECM can do for 62+ seniors that have enough equity in their homes to access it, otherwise if short to close get nothing. After appraisal if their repairs cost money they don't have, get nothing. Many seniors are under the assumption that if they get a reverse mortgage, they don't have to pay taxes and insurance anymore, but that is not the case. Because HECM loans under their state's loan limit threshold are FHA insured, they pay upfront MIP a year in advance, plus recurring taxes, insurance and are required to keep up the home to FHA standards.Heirs can have the home if they pay back all disbursements plus high interest, otherwise it's sold and any work done to make it sellable is charged back to the dead borrower's heirs, because, hey, it's a violation of the terms of the deal.

What it came down to was I had a manager that hung her hat on quality assurance and knew little about the business and compliance side of post closing. She's never reviewed the custody agreements the team delivers to so she doesn't even know what's the right thing to do. She was excluded from new business meetings and didn't know or care enough to ask as it came down the pipeline, she sat on her hands before I got there and did nothing about the lack of department PNP, the MERS mismanagement, the need to secure original documents and the guidelines surrounding them until someone pointed it out to her. I even saw it in action in one of the record retention project meetings when before we got started, the discussion was about HUD petr reviews and she didn't know that the de underwriter would be dinged if the loan was deemed incurable, defective and uninsurable. She thought a broken loan is broken and just a loss to the company (period). She flooded the Santa Ana HOC with loans that didn't clear MIP and then they called her on it after I complained for two days. A strategic move she said. To see how loud and how many times I would complain about it because each one was landing on the reports my team was processing? Change management skills were minimal. She'd get a directive to change all of our collateral processes because one new warehouse wanted it a certain way. What? I called her on it and because she had called all of us in her office, I had to be tactful about it and come to find out I was right. And there was no thank you, how did you know, or empowerment over any of that. I described working for her as a white water rapid ride and every time I didn't get the information needed to do my job, I felt like I was getting bumped hard to the side of the boat almost being thrown overboard. It was a gut feeling, and I should of listened to my gut sooner, I should of stopped and thought that it was weird after the manager of the dept who worked under her up and quit and then I was called for a lesser role. Hind sight... She kept telling me I was slow to manage my staff and staff attendance problems. Well, slow just came to a hard stop yesterday. And I don't have to deal with it or her anymore.

Is this work or something else?

02/19

http://www.businessinsider.com/googles-ranking-system-okr-2014-1

Scorecard: points are minutes. Total minutes = your productivity. Don't meet pace and your productivity minimum will be in question.

QA Reports layered on top of your pace can make your work look sloppy when you can't work fast enough and maintain your accuracy.

And then I was thinking... 02/16/16

They say the essentials we all need are food, shelter and clothing. [...and then the government taxes us for what they provide while we provide some sort of existence/life for our ourselves and our families. Paid taxes in 2015 for the first time in a while.]

But as I was walking back to my home after driving home from work, it hit me that these things are driven by money, emotions, and comfort.

One's ability to earn enough money could either raise or lower the emotional state resulting in a level of comfort in life. Personality and education back it up. Health, whether it be physical or mental is controllable to a certain extent, but for the most part, your health outcome is in the genes you get from your parents. You get what you get healthwise, from genetics, unless you smoke, drink, or take/abuse drugs and food and don't choose to move your body in vigorus ways to help build muscle and remove the toxins then the results or the lack thereof - you did to yourself and your genes did it to you. [Yes, I have Crohn's disease, but changing jobs has changed my commute and my stress level is down due to less of a commute, up to new surrounding and standards to get re-acquainted with on job tasks I'm already familiar with and working for a manager that actually cares to manage, but change is good.]

And then I was thinking, that,  "Isn't it enough to be a good person?" ...as I drive home on the "freeway" in this car, with this amazing horsepower as I grasp the steering wheel, this conveyance I'm seated in, that others, too, are seated in as we travel to our destinations and in my mind's eye/imagination- the exterior of the cars melted away and all people commuting on the freeway were seated floating in a dimly glowing interior blue light with powertrain and frame assuming the driving position with hands on their steering wheels, no upholstery with tires-this technology that really hasn't changed all that much in over 100 years [but to make it faster, safer, use less gas, or another fuel, but really at what cost to our environment if the power to make that alternate fuel was derived from fossil fuel?] and when we as humans end up using up all of the fossil fuels this world has, would we then need to worry about the need to expand our roadways or instead how they scarred the earth, contributed to global warming and how they'll need to be deconstructed?

No, it's not enough to be a good person if you're not exhibiting that goodness for someone else other than yourself to recognize, witness and benefit from. Hence we reward the leaders in their field - whatever they may be and punish those who don't meet society's expectations of what is good and right and true and sometimes - most of the time - logical.

If people were forced to work and live only within the areas that their feet could carry them, how many could? Could one's life be richer and still not have to worry financially?

And to think the fact that management tools are being rolled out to my team tomorrow. And I'm so excited, I can't sleep.

1st Day

Today, August 10, 2015, I have started a new chapter in my career working back in Orange County again and closer to home. Today is my first day at American Advisors Group, the largest reverse mortgage originator in the U.S. and I'm the new Inventory Control Supervisor.

According to Jim

So I got a call from a former client to discuss some future business as he was told to call this week because of impending June vacations for the people he needed to speak to, including me.

As the conversation went, he asked me how was my vacation and I told him about how this year I worked on my floor instead of taking a trip. And he said that he, too, was in the middle of a flooring project. I am my father's daughter. We were comparing experiences with our fathers, tools, father's job... they were both machinists. 

Anyway, with all of the disparaging feelings I was having about things that are basically out of my control, that one conversation was the bright light I needed today. So according to Jim, I'm OK and knowing that was reassuring.  

It's June!

Last year, I was fully expecting that now I'd be recovering from my third major surgery battling Crohn's disease, but the medication the GI doctor prescribed has helped and gave me a tool to use when I'm feeling bad. After having a colonoscopy and finding out that the pain I was experiencing was from an ulcer instead of advanced Crohn's, I decided that it's probably a better idea for me to focus on doing things that make me feel well, eating well and de-stressing my life.

So part of that de-stressing regime has been looking for a job closer to home. I like driving, but having to drive in LA traffic to and from work four days a week (Monday's I work remotely from Brea) is a time waster and it's frustrating when it doesn't keep moving. I live 42 miles from work. In no traffic, it takes me 35 minutes to get to work. But in traffic, it can take anywhere from 1-2 hours to get to work. And, yes, I've tried rideshare commuting, but to be honest, it doesn't make that much difference in LA traffic. The solution is working closer to home. Immediately when I started to look for a new job, there were two different MERS positions that were posted and I got a telephone interview for the one I applied to, but found out that they couldn't meet my salary requirements. So I'm still looking.

Once the senior on my team came back to work after she had recovered from surgery, I scheduled my two week vacation. Last year, for vacation, I flew to DC and stayed with my aunt in VA and while my uncle was in a nursing home recovering from a heart attack. I drove up to Massachusetts and New York to meet up with family among other thing. I accumulated a lot of PTO between then and May planning on that LOA, but I didn't need it, so I had to take a vacation.

So instead of going back to the East coast this year, I'm having a stay-cation for the summer of 2015. The first week, I'm proud to say I did nothing. Absolutely nothing. And it felt good. The second week, I'm attacking the last of the floor project that was so rudely interrupted by December's broken wrist that I got from falling at work. Oh, and by the way, that infatuation for my therapist went absolutely no where. Which I'm kind of glad about because the new normal after menopause has not been any fun either. So I'm moving furniture and prepping the floor tomorrow.

Dear Diary 03/06/2015

Dear Diary,

I don't think anyone really reads this blog unless they *really* know me or trip over it while scanning for something to read in general on Blogger being nosy and peaking into others lives or even living vicariously through them, so here it goes.

Yesterday was the last day of my physical therapy. It was twelve sessions of a routine structured by my physical therapist in order to gain back the flexibility and strength in my left wrist. My left hand is still weaker than the right one, always has been, but I've got full flexibility and can move with no pain which were the main goals.

So along with doing this routine, I have unexpectedly been getting to know my physical therapist.

On the first day, he seemed excited that he met me... a woman who was around the same general age he was and he started to talk about moving to Irvine and how bad-bad-bad the traffic is driving around LA. And then, whether he realized it or not, he insulted me and my decisions about morality. "What in the hell...", and "Where does he get off...", was the running through my mind as I was hooked up to the electric muscle stimulator/ice pack wrap for the next 20 minutes. I couldn't just walk out, I didn't want to create a scene in the therapy room by ripping off the pack and electrodes as I already did that online by writing a bitchy review on Yelp.com about deceitful practices, wait times and patient privacy in the clinic. In my mind, I knew I had a finite time for therapy and then I wouldn't have to deal with Mr. Insensitive ever again.

Most of the time when there were other patients in the PT room, I'd just sign in and do this routine: stretch on the tabletop both ways, twist the red rubber rod both ways, exercise my fingers to gain strength with devices that look like clothes pins, wrist rolls with 1 and then 2 lbs weights (100 reps each way, front, back, and vertical), wall push-ups, picking up and putting down a weighted wooden box, then 10 minutes on full body cycle. After other patients left, he'd talk to me more and more.

And like I stated before, yesterday, was the last day of therapy. He talked about his HAMP refinance, his interest rate, his sister, his parents, his friends marriage and how his wife doesn't cook or clean, snow in Utah, San Francisco, Texas, the bonus money he got by working in Texas, taxes and deductions, eventually moving to Seattle, his parents and the fact that he's working on Torrance per diem this weekend. I'm not a psychologist, I'm a human. If people feel the need to talk to me, I'm a good listener. I'm not sure if it sunk in that I'm not going to be coming to therapy anymore with this guy. I asked for a printout reflecting that I went to all of my therapy session so show my employer. And we said our goodbyes and he said he would see me on the 17th when I have my appointment with the Ortho doctor, which confused me. I asked if he'll be at the appointment, and he said he's be here.

With all of these discussions, I feel like I'm getting sized up for a bigger role in his life as though he he's interested in me and wants more than just the therapist/patient relationship, but hasn't directly expressed this to me. Why do guys send out signals like this?

Fractured

Dear Diary,

I fell off of the step ladder at work yesterday and in doing so, the Dr. thinks I fractured my left wrist. All I know is that it started to swell up almost immediately, which scared me, and it hurt like hell. One of my co-workers took me to urgent care (their workman's comp clinic) after I got with HR to get it checked out. Almost 3 hours later, after x-rays and an examination were done, I was sent home with a splint on my forearm, a cold pack and a bottle of Tramadol.

I was so uncomfortable last night and insomnia set in from the pain med, I only napped a few hours. I feel dopey and highly medicated and since Tramadol works by upping the serotonin; I feel like I can take on the world, but at the same time I'm frustrated by the pain if I move my arm certain ways and having the splint on it. Tried opening a child proof med bottle with one hand. Thinking how stupid it was for the Dr. to send me home with bottle cap like that-and feeling pain-frustrated-humorous all at the same time.

Girlie doesn't understand I'm in pain and still wants to cuddle up with me especially since I've absconded her pillow using it to rest the splint on it.

But hey, at least it was my left and not my right wrist, so I can drive, write and type. I have a follow-up appt on Monday. The Dr. had to send the x-rays out to a Radiologist to get a determination on my injury. I'm hoping this weekend's rest will be enough time to get the pain to subside enough so I can function without having to take the Tramadol and I can get back to work. My boss ordered a new step ladder for the mortgage vault. Merry Christmas?!