The Mortgage House

What The Mortgage House does

The Mortgage House is a California-based residential mortgage lender operating as a DBA of Dignified Home Loans, LLC, founded in 1995 by Ira Cohen and headquartered in Westlake Village, California. The company originates and services home purchase loans, refinance loans (rate, cash-out, debt consolidation), and reverse mortgages — including a jumbo reverse product up to $4 million — through a network of 27 branches across California and Nevada, with additional locations in Arizona, Ohio, and Washington. It is a Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-approved seller/servicer (NMLS #309234) and holds lending licenses across 21 states.

The business operates on a branch-based direct sales model: dedicated loan officers work face-to-face with borrowers across the home purchase and refinance lifecycle, supplemented by digital channels including a borrower web application portal, borrower account portal, an eight-tool mortgage calculator suite, and corporate phone/email support. Technology infrastructure is built on the ICE Mortgage Technology loan origination platform, which handles application intake, processing, underwriting, and document management. No proprietary AI/ML, blockchain, or non-standard technology layer is evidenced; the stack is consistent with mid-sized independent mortgage industry norms.

Revenue is generated from transaction-based origination fees on closed mortgage loans and recurring servicing income from the loan portfolio held or sold to agency partners. Customer segments span first-time home buyers, repeat buyers, investors seeking home purchase financing, existing homeowners refinancing, and seniors aged 62+ using reverse mortgages. Marketing is driven by Realtor and title company referral relationships, local community involvement (Chamber of Commerce, city-level partnerships such as Temecula's first-time homebuyer program), and a self-service web presence. Leadership combines President Ira Cohen (40+ years, founder), CEO Jack W. Schakett (former Countrywide/Bank of America executive), Managing Director Vegard Lindas, and COO Marius Nicolau; the company has remained privately held and founder/management-owned since 1995, with no institutional investors disclosed.

Name

The Mortgage House

Legal name

Dignified Home Loans, LLC

Website

https://themortgagehouse.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Mortgage House is a privately held California-based residential mortgage lender (DBA of Dignified Home Loans, LLC), serving home buyers, refinancers, and seniors 62+ through 27 branches across California and Nevada with branch-based loan officers and digital self-service channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Residential Mortgage Lending

NAICS

Real Estate Credit (522292)

SIC

Mortgage Bankers & Loan Correspondents (6162)

akta.pro primary industry

Reverse Mortgage Origination (HECM & Proprietary) (FSALAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cash-Out Refinance Origination (FSALAAAF), Renovation Mortgage Origination (FHA 203(k), HomeStyle, CHOICERenovation) (FSALAAAL), Reverse Mortgage Servicing & Subservicing (FSALAIAC)

Keywords

• Residential mortgage lending
• Home purchase financing
• Refinance loans
• Reverse mortgages
• California mortgage banker

Headquarters

HQ city

Westlake Village

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices21 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Mortgage Loan Origination: Revenue generated from originating mortgage loans for home purchases and refinances. The company acts as a direct lender, approved by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, earning origination fees on closed loans.
2. Loan Servicing: Revenue from servicing the loan portfolio after origination, including collecting monthly payments, managing escrow accounts, and handling borrower communications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Mortgage House is a California-focused residential mortgage lender that originates home purchase loans (FHA, VA, Conventional, Cal-Vet, jumbo), home refinance loans (rate reduction, cash-out, debt consolidation), and reverse mortgages for homeowners aged 62 and older (including jumbo reverse mortgages up to $4 million). The company operates as a direct lender approved by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, processes, underwrites, and funds loans in-house, and services its originated loan portfolio through a network of 27 branches in California and Nevada.

Product overview

The Mortgage House is a residential mortgage lending company operating as a single-brand, single-platform offering under Dignified Home Loans, LLC. The core product portfolio consists of three main mortgage products—Home Purchase Loans, Home Refinance, and Dignified Reverse (reverse mortgages for seniors aged 62+)—supplemented by an eight-tool Mortgage Calculators Suite and web-based Online Loan Application and Borrower Account portals. The company operates exclusively through loan officers across branch locations and does not appear to offer distinct module tiers or separate platform add-ons; all services are delivered through the unified The Mortgage House brand with a California-focused lending approach since 1995.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Home Purchase Loans

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Broadview Home LoansmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Broadview Home Loans was merged into the Dignified lending platform in 2018 alongside The Mortgage House. They operate as part of the same family of mortgage lenders under Dignified Home Loans, sharing branch locations in California.
• Dignified Home LoanscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Parent company formed in 2011 by Jack Schakett and partner. The Mortgage House was combined into Dignified Home Loans in 2018 along with Broadview Home Loans onto the unified Dignified lending platform. The Mortgage House operates as DBA of Dignified Home Loans, LLC.
• Fannie MaecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Mortgage House is an approved Fannie Mae seller/servicer, enabling the company to sell mortgages to Fannie Mae and service loans on their behalf. This partnership allows the company to offer conventional loan products and access secondary mortgage market liquidity.
• Freddie MaccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Mortgage House is an approved Freddie Mac seller/servicer, providing access to secondary mortgage market and enabling conventional loan product offerings. Direct seller to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as stated on company website.
• Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)minorOthersThe Mortgage House is a member of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), a national association serving the real estate finance industry.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• loanDepot: Large multi-channel residential mortgage lender (retail, wholesale, partner direct) with national branch footprint. Comparable to The Mortgage House in core product mix (purchase, refi, reverse) but materially larger in scale and broader geographic reach.
• Rocket Mortgage: Largest U.S. retail mortgage lender, direct-to-consumer digital-first. Same core product set (purchase, refi, reverse via Rocket Reverse) but operates at vastly greater scale and competes for the same California borrower pool with a technology-forward model.
• United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM): Largest U.S. wholesale mortgage lender. While UWM focuses on the broker channel rather than retail, it competes for the same underlying origination economics and pricing — providing a useful benchmark for industry margin trends and competitive intensity.
• Caliber Home Loans: Multi-channel residential mortgage lender offering purchase, refinance, and reverse products with both retail and wholesale channels. Comparable to The Mortgage House across product categories but operating at substantially larger scale.

Direct peers

• Guild Mortgage: Retail-focused residential mortgage lender with strong West Coast / California presence and branch-based distribution. Closely comparable to The Mortgage House in operating model, target customer (homebuyers, refi), and geographic orientation.
• New American Funding: California-headquartered residential mortgage lender with branch network and diverse loan programs including FHA, VA, conventional, and reverse. Highly comparable in geographic focus, product mix, and mid-market retail origination model.
• American Pacific Mortgage: Western U.S.-focused retail mortgage lender with branch network and similar product offerings. Comparable to The Mortgage House in regional retail orientation, mid-size lender profile, and dependence on local Realtor referral channels.
• Homebridge Financial Services: Residential mortgage lender with retail and wholesale channels and broad loan program offerings. Comparable to The Mortgage House as a mid-size diversified mortgage lender with branch-based distribution and similar product menu.

Emerging players

• Paramount Equity: California-based reverse mortgage specialist. Directly comparable to The Mortgage House's Dignified Reverse product line, particularly in proprietary/jumbo reverse mortgages for high-value California properties.
• Longbridge Financial: Reverse mortgage-focused lender offering HECM and proprietary reverse mortgage products. Directly comparable to Dignified Reverse, particularly in jumbo proprietary reverse mortgages targeting high-value property owners.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Mortgage House