Douglas Elliman links up with small Chicago firm for financing

Deal comes less than a year after Elliman's joint venture with Wells Fargo ended

From left: Steve Calk, chief executive of Federal Savings Bank, Dottie Herman and Ace Watanasuparp
From left: Steve Calk, chief executive of Federal Savings Bank, Dottie Herman and Ace Watanasuparp

Douglas Elliman has taken a new lender under its wing that supposedly provides borrowers with more tailored mortgage financing, the company announced today.

Federal Savings Bank will partner with the national residential firm, with the goal of originating between $3 billion and $5 billion in mortgages annually.

The new lender, an arm of the Chicago-based bank DE Capital Division, is a small operator in New York, garnering $70 million in mortgages in 2012. That ranked it as the 168th largest lender in the state, according to data from SNL Financial, Crain’s reported. Previously, Elliman worked with Wells Fargo in a joint venture to provide mortgages. Officials told Crain’s the switch will give buyers more flexibility when arranging financing.

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“In bigger institutions, the middle management will often not make a decision outside of the box,” Dottie Herman, chief executive of Douglas Elliman, said to Crain’s. “We want to talk about the individual.”

Ace Watanasuparp, the current head of DE Capital and formerly a branch manager for Bank of America in Queens, will lead the new partnership. [Crain’s]Angela Hunt