Quicken Loans Becomes Nation's Largest Online Retail Mortgage Lender

Business Wire, Nov 23, 2004

LIVONIA, Mich. -- Quicken Loans, which offers residential mortgages and home equity loans in all 50 states through its award winning www.Quickenloans.com Web site, has become the nation's largest online retail mortgage lender according to National Mortgage News, the publication which compiles quarterly rankings for the mortgage industry.

Quicken Loans achieved this #1 ranking for the third quarter of 2004, which covers the months of July, August and September. During that quarter Quicken Loans closed nearly $2 billion in residential mortgage loans on the Internet. Quicken Loans closed a total of $2.52 billion in mortgage loans (on and offline) during that same time frame.

"Although our market share continues to increase quarter after quarter, we believe our biggest increases in market share and technological solutions are ahead of us," said Quicken Loans founder and Chairman Dan Gilbert. "The Internet has changed the mortgage industry for the better, making the process easier and far more convenient. Every day our 2,250 smart, hard-working team members find new ways to make the mortgage process simple and painless, which translates to innovative mortgage programs and an unparalleled level of service for our clients."

"There's no question that consumers have embraced the Internet and are increasingly comfortable purchasing a home or refinancing their mortgage online, especially when it's from a name they trust," said CEO Bill Emerson.

Gilbert founded the company as Rock Financial in 1985 and it quickly became one of the country's fastest growing mortgage companies. He took the company public in 1998 and began offering home loans via the Internet in early 1999. In December 1999, Gilbert sold the company to Intuit Inc., maker of Quicken and TurboTax software, at which time the name was changed to Quicken Loans Inc. Gilbert led a small group of private investors in purchasing the company back from Intuit in 2002. The company is now 100 percent privately held and maintains the Quicken Loans brand name.

In addition to www.QuickenLoans.com, Quicken Loans Inc. also operates a brick-and-mortar branch system under the Rock Financial name in Southeast Michigan, which has become Michigan's largest mortgage company. Quicken Loans and Rock Financial are hiring 150 to 200 loan officers each month to support their continued growth.

About Quicken Loans

Quicken Loans Inc., which consists of online lender Quicken Loans, Rock Financial and Title Source, is the largest online retail mortgage lender and closed more than $12 billion in mortgage loans in calendar year 2003. The company's website, http://www.Quickenloans.com, has been named a "Best of the Web" mortgage lending site by Forbes, Money and PC magazines. Based in Livonia, MI, the company has more than 2,250 mortgage professionals and was named to FORTUNE Magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" in America.