While the mortgage industry is watching how the situation between UWM Holdings and an unnamed buyer for Two Harbors will work out, another large lender is diving headlong into a merger.

CrossCountry Mortgage, the Cleveland-based lender that says it's been No. 1 in retail three years running, has agreed to buy another privately held firm, Summit Funding of Sacramento, California.

Terms of the deal, including financials, will remain confidential. CrossCountry is licensed in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Summit is in 48 states, with the press release stating it is a top 35 retail lender.

"After running a private mortgage bank for over 30 years, I know that growth doesn't happen by accident," Todd Scrima, CEO of Summit, said in the press release. "It happens through scale, investment and a commitment to supporting the teams out in the field every day." This deal gives its loan officers access to more tools and increased earning potential, Scrima added.

"Our No. 1 focus over the last few years has been to build a company where the best talent in the industry wants to come to work," said Ron Leonhardt, CEO of CrossCountry Mortgage. "Summit Funding has a reputation for high-performance teams and has a great group of talented originators."

Earlier this month, CrossCountry announced it was investing in a builder division. Last year it entered into a technology partnership with Blend.

Both companies have dealt with legal challenges regarding hiring of loan officers. Summit was facing a suit from Movement in 2024, while for CrossCountry, loanDepot was the plaintiff that same year. 

CrossCountry is also the defendant in six alleged Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act violation complaints in North Carolina

On the other hand, CrossCountry sued Christopher Gallo, a New Jersey-based former top producer accused of falsifying loan documents at a previous employer.