Madison-based Wisconsin Bank & Trust plans to enter the Milwaukee market with a mortgage lending office in Brookfield.
The bank will hire 10 to 14 mortgage originators and two to four operations employees for the new office, which is located at 20300 Watertower Road, Suite 210. It will open in June.
Chad Horkan has been named manager at the Brookfield location. He has more than 11 years of mortgage lending experience and most recently served as vice president-sales manager.
“We see outstanding opportunity in the mortgage market, at a time when some ‘big banks’ are shrinking their mortgage-lending presence in the Milwaukee area and even closing offices,” said President Kevin Tenpas. “Our expansion strategy focuses on delivering the level of service customers expect from community banks, as well as attractive loan pricing.”
Wisconsin Bank & Trust has 10 branches in Wisconsin, including in Sheboygan. It has been expanding this year, with two other mortgage lending offices recently opened in the state.
“At this time, many homeowners are taking advantage of near record-low interest rates to refinance their mortgage loans,” said Brett Toyne, regional manager. “We’re also increasingly seeing a pickup in home-purchase transactions. As we continue building our operations, we expect a continuation of the organic growth that has enabled us to take this first step in the Milwaukee area.”
