Basis of Presentation

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2021

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Basis of PresentationThe consolidated financial statements presented herein are at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, and for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020. These interim unaudited consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Certain information and note disclosures normally included in our annual financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") — as prescribed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) — have been condensed or omitted in these interim financial statements according to these SEC rules and regulations. Management believes that the disclosures included in these interim financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020. In the opinion of management, all normal and recurring adjustments to present fairly the financial condition of the Company at June 30, 2021 and results of operations for all periods presented have been made. The results of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 should not be construed as indicative of the results to be expected for the full year.

Principles of Consolidation

In accordance with GAAP, we determine whether we must consolidate transferred financial assets and variable interest entities (“VIEs”) for financial reporting purposes. We currently consolidate the assets and liabilities of certain Sequoia securitization entities issued prior to 2012 ("Legacy Sequoia"), certain entities formed in connection with the securitization of Redwood Choice expanded-prime loans and, beginning in the second quarter of 2021, Redwood Select loans ("Sequoia"), and entities formed in connection with the securitization of CoreVest single-family rental loans ("CAFL"). We also consolidate the assets and liabilities of certain Freddie Mac K-Series and Freddie Mac Seasoned Loans Structured Transaction ("SLST") securitizations in which we have invested. Each securitization entity is independent of Redwood and of each other and the assets and liabilities are not owned by and are not legal obligations of Redwood Trust, Inc. Our exposure to these entities is primarily through the financial interests we have purchased or retained, although for the consolidated Sequoia and CAFL entities we are exposed to certain financial risks associated with our role as a sponsor, servicing administrator, or depositor of these entities or as a result of our having sold assets directly or indirectly to these entities.

For financial reporting purposes, the underlying loans owned at the consolidated Sequoia and Freddie Mac SLST entities are shown under Residential loans held-for-investment at fair value, the underlying loans at the consolidated Freddie Mac K-Series entity are shown under Multifamily loans held-for-investment at fair value, and the underlying single-family rental loans at the consolidated CAFL entities are shown under Business purpose loans held-for-investment at fair value on our consolidated balance sheets. The asset-backed securities (“ABS”) issued to third parties by these entities are shown under ABS issued. In our consolidated statements of income (loss), we recorded interest income on the loans owned at these entities and interest expense on the ABS issued by these entities as well as other income and expenses associated with these entities' activities. See Note 14 for further discussion on ABS issued.

We also consolidate two partnerships ("Servicing Investment" entities) through which we have invested in servicing-related assets. We maintain an 80% ownership interest in each entity and have determined that we are the primary beneficiary of these partnerships.

See Note 4 for further discussion on principles of consolidation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements requires us to make a number of significant estimates. These include estimates of fair value of certain assets and liabilities, amounts and timing of credit losses, prepayment rates, and other estimates that affect the reported amounts of certain assets and liabilities as of the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of certain revenues and expenses during the reported periods. It is likely that changes in these estimates (e.g., valuation changes due to supply and demand, credit performance, prepayments, interest rates, or other reasons) will occur in the near term. Our estimates are inherently subjective in nature and actual results could differ from our estimates and the differences could be material.

Acquisitions

Refer to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 for additional information regarding the acquisitions of 5 Arches, LLC ("5 Arches") and CoreVest American Finance Lender, LLC and certain affiliated entities ("CoreVest"), including purchase price allocations.

In connection with the acquisitions of 5 Arches and CoreVest in 2019, we identified and recorded finite-lived intangible assets totaling $25 million and $57 million, respectively. The table below presents the amortization period and carrying value of our intangible assets, net of accumulated amortization at June 30, 2021.

Table 2.1 – Intangible Assets – Activity


	Intangible Assets at Acquisition		Accumulated Amortization at June 30, 2021		Carrying Value at June 30, 2021		Weighted Average Amortization Period (in years)
(Dollars in Thousands)
Borrower network	$	45,300	$	(11,055)	$	34,245	7
Broker network	18,100		(8,447)		9,653		5
Non-compete agreements	9,500		(6,014)		3,486		3
Tradenames	4,000		(2,528)		1,472		3
Developed technology	1,800		(1,537)		263		2
Loan administration fees on existing loan assets	2,600		(2,600)		—		1
Total	$	81,300	$	(32,181)	$	49,119	6

All of our intangible assets are amortized on a straight-line basis. For each of the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, we recorded intangible asset amortization expense of $8 million. Estimated future amortization expense is summarized in the table below.

Table 2.2 – Intangible Asset Amortization Expense by Year



(In Thousands)	June 30, 2021
2021 (6 months)	$	7,558
2022	12,800
2023	10,091
2024	7,073
2025 and thereafter	11,597
Total Future Intangible Asset Amortization	$	49,119

On a quarterly basis, we evaluate our finite-lived intangible assets for impairment indicators and additionally evaluate the useful lives of our intangible assets to determine if revisions to the remaining periods of amortization are warranted. We reviewed our finite-lived intangible assets and determined that the estimated lives were appropriate and that there were no indicators of impairment at June 30, 2021.

A liability resulting from the contingent consideration arrangement with 5 Arches was initially recorded in 2019 at its acquisition-date fair value as part of total consideration for the acquisition of 5 Arches. During the first quarter of 2021, we distributed 806,068 shares of Redwood common stock and paid $1 million in cash in full settlement of the remaining deferred consideration associated with this acquisition.