LendingTree to Acquire HomeLoanCenter.com
CHARLOTTE, NC, September 8, 2004 – LendingTree, Inc.®, the leading online lending and real estate exchange, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire HomeLoanCenter.com, a second-generation Internet-based direct mortgage lender headquartered in Irvine, California.
“HomeLoanCenter.com has built an impressive online loan origination platform, and we believe its innovative and successful approach to automating the mortgage lending process will be a great benefit to our consumers,” said Doug Lebda, founder and chief executive officer of LendingTree. “This acquisition will help us to increase our profit per customer, have greater input over the consumer experience, more effectively cross-sell our Realty Services offering, and gain market share. Importantly, we will continue to operate the same robust LendingTree lending exchange, and consumers will continue to receive multiple competing loan offers in an environment that offers choice, convenience and value.”
“LendingTree’s acquisition of HomeLoanCenter.com is a direct win for consumers,” said Anthony Hsieh, founder and chief executive officer of HomeLoanCenter.com. “We’ve built our business by leveraging technology for scalable growth, constantly looking for ways to improve, and joining with LendingTree will now more than ever enable us to create a full technological infrastructure and deliver a broader variety of comprehensive programs to the full spectrum of consumers.”
Hsieh, along with HomeLoanCenter.com President Tomo Yebisu, will remain with the company. Hsieh will report to Lebda.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close in approximately 90 to 120 days.
About HomeLoanCenter.com
Founded in 2002, HomeLoanCenter.com, a branchless retail consumer direct lender, is the industry’s first full spectrum online retail mortgage lender dedicated to bringing consumers direct access to the most diverse array of mortgage products available, through its innovative Web site and call center. Anthony Hsieh, founder and CEO, has developed an Internet platform that delivers a superior lending experience to all borrowers regardless of credit profile, loan type, or loan amount, through its proprietary technologies PACE and CHLOE. A top ten online direct lender, approved in all 50 states, HomeLoanCenter.com is headquartered in Irvine, California. For more information contact 800-94-CENTER or visit us on line at www.homeloancenter.com.
About LendingTree, Inc.
Founded in 1996, LendingTree is an online exchange that connects consumers with Lenders and REALTORS®. LendingTree has facilitated nearly $87.7 billion in closed loan and real estate transactions since its inception, serving more than 13.5 million consumers. Loans available via the LendingTree exchange include home mortgage and refinance, home equity, automobile, personal, debt consolidation, and credit cards. The LendingTree Realty Services offering enables consumers in the market to buy or sell a home to choose from a nationwide network of REALTORS who can help them from start to finish. LendingTree is an operating business of IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI). LendingTree also owns and operates RealEstate.com, Domania, GetSmart.com, and the ServiceMagic lending and real estate businesses. REALTOR® — A registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.