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Lenders are doing a better job keeping consumers informed about the loan process, according to the latest J.D. Power mortgage survey. But the actual speed of loan closings is also a key factor to borrowers' overall satisfaction.
November 16 -
BancPlus in Ridgeland, Miss., has hired two Morgan Stanley financial advisers to lead its new wealth-management unit.
June 4 -
Kent Wiechert, owner of Weststar Mortgage in Albuquerque, N.M., has acquired Goldwater Bank in Scottsdale, Ariz.
September 21
First Bancshares in Hattiesburg, Miss., has agreed to buy Mortgage Connection in Jackson, Miss.
The $1.1 billion-asset First did not disclose financial terms. The deal is expected to close early next month.
Mortgage Connection employs 14 mortgage loan originators and runs offices in Jackson, Brandon and Madison, Miss. Margaret Byrd, co-founder of Mortgage Connection, will join The First as senior vice president of mortgage banking.
"This is a great opportunity for our bank to enter a fast-growing market. Expanding into the Jackson MSA is a natural fit within our strategy of developing a franchise in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana," said M. Ray Cole, First's president and CEO.
