PHH Corporation
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Founder | Duane Peterson, Harley Howell, Richard Heather |
| Headquarters | Mount Laurel , United States |
Area served | United States, Canada |
Key people | Glen A. Messina (President and CEO of parent company Ocwen) |
| Products | Mortgage services, formerly fleet management and employee relocation services |
| Parent | Ocwen Financial Corp. |
The PHH Corporation is a U.S.-based financial services firm headquartered in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, specializing in mortgage services for prominent international financial institutions. It stands as the foremost originator of home loans outsourced in the United States, facilitating mortgage production for regional banks as well as major entities such as Morgan Stanley and HSBC Holdings Plc. On October 4, 2018, PHH was acquired by Ocwen Financial and currently functions as a fully owned subsidiary of Ocwen Financial Corp.
History
PHH was established in 1946 by Duane Peterson, Harley Howell, and Richard Heather in Mount Laurel. The company incorporated in 1953 under Maryland law, initially providing services in mortgage services, employee relocation services, and fleet management.
Between April 30, 1997, and February 1, 2005, PHH operated as a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (now Avis Budget Group), delivering mortgage banking, relocation assistance, and fleet management solutions. After being spun off from Cendant on February 1, 2005, PHH became an independent publicly traded entity listed under the ticker symbol .
On July 1, 2014, PHH divested its Fleet Management Services division to Element Financial Corporation for $1.4 billion. This segment catered to corporate and governmental clients throughout the U.S. and Canada by offering fleet leasing and associated vehicle services. The transaction resulted in a net gain of $241 million as disclosed in PHH’s 2014 Annual Report.
In November 2014, an Administrative law judge determined that PHH had breached the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act by issuing unlawful kickbacks through referrals connected to mortgage insurers affiliated with a PHH subsidiary, leading to a $6.5 million penalty. PHH challenged this ruling before the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray, who expanded the scope of RESPA’s application and mandated PHH to repay $109 million in June 2015.
This order was stayed by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in August 2015. Subsequently, on October 11, 2016, the court vacated and remanded Cordray’s decision citing due process violations. Additionally, Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh found that the CFPB Director’s removal protections were unconstitutional; however, this judgment was partially reversed by the full D.C. Circuit on January 31, 2018, which upheld those protections.
Following Ocwen Financial Corp’s acquisition of PHH for roughly $360 million on October 4, 2018, PHH’s shares were removed from the NYSE and consolidated under Ocwen's ticker symbol . Glen A. Messina, former CEO of PHH, assumed the roles of President and CEO at Ocwen as PHH completed its integration as a subsidiary.