Whether it’s refining your business model, mastering new technologies, or discovering strategies to capitalize on the next market surge, Inman Connect New York will prepare you to take bold steps forward. The Next Chapter is about to begin. Be part of it. Join us and thousands of real estate leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025.
Fintech mortgage lender Lower is investing in its in-house technology through the acquisition of loan originations software provider Neat Labs, on terms it did not disclose.
Lower said Tuesday it will integrate Neat Labs’ software into its own cloud-based mortgage platform, LowerOS, and that Neat Capital co-founder and chief technology officer Steve Herschleb has joined Lower as CTO.
Founded in Boulder, Colorado by Herschleb and CEO Luke Johnson and launched in 2017, Neat Capital was previously in the lending business through subsidiary Neat Loans, and also offered its loan origination system to banks as a white-label solution.
In announcing a Series B-1 funding round in 2022, Neat Capital said it had raised more than $40 million from investors. Before shifting gears to concentrate on its loan originations software, the company said it originated more than $1 billion in mortgages.
Dan Snyder
“We’re thrilled to bring Neat Labs into the Lower family,” Lower CEO Dan Snyder said in a statement. “Their technology is the foundation of our next chapter.”
Lower said Herschleb, whose experience also includes a stint as chief product officer at mortgage technology provider Maxwell, will play “a critical role” in the development of its cloud-based mortgage platform, LowerOS.
Steve Herschleb
“LowerOS will change the way consumers think about getting a mortgage whether they are buying a new home, refinancing to reduce their monthly payments or tapping the equity in their home to consolidate debts or pay for a major life event like that overdue home remodel,” Herschleb said, in a statement.
LowerOS, he said, will “make getting a mortgage feel more like a car loan or a credit card.”
In announcing the deal, Lower said the plan is to give borrowers “self-serve access” to Neat Labs’ underwriting engine through LowerOS, “letting consumers select the best loan product and payment plan they qualify for.”
LowerOS “also automates many of the time-consuming tasks in the mortgage process, reducing the time and cost for borrowers to get a loan and giving Lower’s nationwide network of loan officers more time to spend guiding each client,” Lower said.
Lower growing through acquisitions
With backers including Accel Partners, SoFi, and Veritex Bank, Columbus, Ohio-based Lower claims to be the nation’s 28th largest mortgage lender. Lower LLC sponsors 533 mortgage loan originators who work out of 87 branch locations around the country, according to records maintained by the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System.
Veritex acquired a 12.5 percent stake in Lower last year when it sold its interest in Texas-based Thrive Mortgage LLC to Lower in a cash and stock deal Lower said doubled its footprint.
That deal closed in March, 2024, with Thrive CEO Selene Kellam joining Lower as chief operating officer, and Thrive Chief Production Officer Randell Gillespie taking on that role for Lower. Lower continues to maintain the Thrive Mortgage brand as one of its “doing business as” brands.
A family of companies under the umbrella of Lower Holding Co., Lower’s origins date to 2014, when Snyder co-founded Maryland-based mortgage lender and servicer Homeside Financial.
The company accelerated its growth with the 2018 launch of Lower.com, which provided a more streamlined, digital process, and a $100 million Series A funding round in 2021 led by venture capital firm Accel. A licensing deal with the Columbus Crew Major League Soccer team has helped the company continue to invest in technology and raise its visibility.
In 2023, Denver-based Universal Lending Home Loans became a division of Lower, with industry veteran TJ Kennedy overseeing retail and wholesale loan production.
In addition to Lower.com, Homeside Financial, Thrive Mortgage and Universal Lending Home Loans, Lower LLC’s trade names include Alderus Mortgage, AMSW Lending, Banner Mortgage, Community Lending, Fairfax Mortgage, First Trust Mortgage Company, Key Mortgage Group, PowerPRO Mortgage, PowerTPO, Premier Nationwide Lending, True Lending, Vybe Mortgage and Yes Mortgage.
Lower also provides real estate brokerage services and homeowners insurance through Lower Realty LLC and Lower Insurance Services LLC.
Lower’s “Realtor agnostic” cash-offer service, MortgagePass, is powered by Homelight Home Loans.
Get Inman’s Mortgage Brief Newsletter delivered right to your inbox. A weekly roundup of all the biggest news in the world of mortgages and closings delivered every Wednesday. Click here to subscribe.
