3) Loans Held For Sale

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Notes

3) Loans Held For Sale

3)Loans Held for Sale 

The Company has elected the fair value option for loans held for sale as disclosed in Note 1. Interest income is recorded based on the contractual terms of the loan and in accordance with the Company’s policy on mortgage loans held for investment and is included in mortgage fee income on the consolidated statement of earnings. There are five loans with an aggregate unpaid principal balance of $1,130,028 that are 90 or more days past due and on a nonaccrual status as of December 31, 2019. See Note 17 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional disclosures regarding loans held for sale.

The following is a summary of the aggregate fair value and the aggregate unpaid principal balance of loans held for sale for the periods presented:

	As of December 31 2019	As of December 31 2018
Aggregate fair value	$          213,457,632	$          136,210,853
Unpaid principal balance	206,417,122	131,663,946
Unrealized gain	7,040,510	4,546,907

8)

Mortgage Fee Income

Mortgage fee income consists of origination fees, processing fees, interest income and certain other income related to the origination and sale of mortgage loans held for sale.

Major categories of mortgage fee income for loans held for sale for the years ended December 31, were as follows:

	2019	2018
Loan fees	$    28,660,966	$    27,429,237
Interest income	6,978,930	6,156,796
Secondary gains	93,581,956	80,416,718
Change in fair value of loan commitments	899,417	(404,773)
Change in fair value of loans held for sale	2,498,097	3,736,209
Provision for loan loss reserve	(643,284)	(1,148,334)
Mortgage fee income	$   131,976,082	$   116,185,853

Loan Loss Reserve

When a repurchase demand corresponding to a mortgage loan previously held for sale and sold to a third-party investor is received from a third-party investor, the relevant data is reviewed and captured so that an estimated future loss can be calculated. The key factors that are used in the estimated loss calculation are as follows: (i) lien position, (ii) payment status, (iii) claim type, (iv) unpaid principal balance, (v) interest rate, and (vi) validity of the demand. Other data is captured and is useful for management purposes; the actual estimated loss is generally based on these key factors. The Company conducts its own review upon the receipt of a repurchase demand. In many instances, the Company is able to resolve the issues relating to the repurchase demand by the third-party investor without having to make any payments to the investor.

The following is a summary of the loan loss reserve which is included in other liabilities and accrued expenses:

	December 31
	2019	2018
Balance, beginning of period	$          3,604,869	$          2,571,524
Provision for current loan originations (1)	643,284	1,148,334
Charge-offs, net of recaptured amounts	(201,865)	(114,989)
Balance, at December 31	$          4,046,288	$          3,604,869
(1) Included in Mortgage fee income

The Company maintains reserves for estimated losses on current production volumes. The Company also retains loss reserves for loans that the Company originated between 2005 and 2007, in which the possibility of an investor claim or potential settlement may still exist. During 2019, reserves were added at a rate of 2.5 basis points per loan originated, the equivalent of $250 per $1,000,000 in loans originated. During 2018, reserves were added at an average rate of 5.0 basis points per loan originated.

Based on the Company’s best estimate for potential loan losses and considering published industry data, loss reserve basis points are established to create an adequate reserve. The reserve is intended to cover both expected losses on recent period loan production and possible losses on earlier loans that were sold. The strong housing market over the last several years has reduced the Company’s exposure to losses on more recent loan production, but exposure still remains on older loans.

During the period from 2006 to 2019, over $60 million has been reserved for loan losses. A large majority of that reserve has been used to settle investor claims or potential claims on alternative documentation loans originated between 2005 to 2007. As the time since the origination of these loans has increased, estimating the potential of a claim being made, when it might be made, the validity of the claim, and the amount of such claim becomes more difficult. However, because some loans remain from the original 2005 to 2007 time period that have not been settled, the Company still includes a reserve for the potential of future loan demands and potential settlements of such loans. As of December 31, 2019, the loan loss reserve includes an estimate of approximately $3,000,000 for remaining losses still to be settled on loans from this time period with a general reserve for more recent loan production. Thus, the Company believes that the final loan loss reserve as of December 31, 2019, represents its best estimate for adequate loss reserves on loans sold.

The Company believes that actual loan loss experience could change in the near-term from the established reserve based upon claims that could be asserted by a third-party investor. The Company believes there is potential to resolve any alleged claims by a third-party investor on acceptable terms. If the Company is unable to resolve such claims on acceptable terms, legal action may ensue. In the event of legal action by any third-party investor, the Company believes it has significant defenses to any such action and intends to vigorously defend itself against such action.