H. F. Ahmanson & Co.

H. F. Ahmanson & Co. was a California-based financial holding company established by Howard Fieldstad Ahmanson in 1927. It began in casualty insurance and expanded through acquisitions into savings and loans, mortgage finance, insurance, banking, title insurance, and related financial services. Its principal operating identity became Home Savings and Loan, later Home Savings of America, which made the group one of the most prominent thrift institutions in the United States. Ahmanson founded the company before completing his studies at the University of Southern California. Its original insurance business benefited during the Great Depression from the growth of foreclosures and related underwriting opportunities. In 1943, Ahmanson regained control of the Omaha-based National American Insurance Company, which had previously been associated with his family. The decisive strategic move came in 1947, when the company acquired the small Home Building and Loan Association. Over the following decade, it bought and combined 18 additional institutions under the Home Savings and Loan name, using California’s postwar housing expansion as the foundation for rapid growth. The company broadened its financial structure during the 1950s and 1960s. It established Ahmanson Bank and Trust Company in 1957, National American Title Insurance Company in 1958, and National American Life Insurance Company of California in 1961. Regulatory change increasingly shaped the business. Antitrust authorities examined the relationship between mortgage lending and fire-insurance sales in the 1950s, although the investigation was discontinued. Later banking legislation required the disposal of Ahmanson Bank; the bank was sold in 1976, while trust activities were retained through Ahmanson Trust Company. Rather than pursue the riskiest forms of consumer and commercial lending, management concentrated heavily on residential real estate and, beginning in the mid-1960s, apartment lending. This conservative approach helped the group navigate the savings-and-loan crisis better than many competitors. Under Richard H. Deihl, who became chairman and chief executive in 1983, the company emphasized controlled expenses, disciplined underwriting, and avoidance of the high-risk junk-bond strategies that damaged numerous thrifts in the late 1980s. During the 1980s, Home Savings expanded beyond California through mergers and acquisitions, operating in markets including Florida, Missouri, Texas, Illinois, New York, Ohio, Arizona, and Washington. The group also developed Ahmanson Mortgage Company lending offices across numerous states. Its interstate thrift operations were often marketed as Savings of America, while the New York Bowery Savings Bank retained its historic name for a period. The company continued acquiring distressed institutions and branches during the early 1990s, including assets associated with Coast Federal Bank, County Bank, HomeFed Bank, Northeast Savings, Western Federal Savings Bank, and other failed or weakened institutions. California’s recession nevertheless reduced earnings and increased nonperforming assets. In 1998, Washington Mutual acquired H. F. Ahmanson & Co. and Home Savings of America in a transaction valued at approximately $10 billion. The acquisition ended Ahmanson as an independent company. After Washington Mutual failed in 2008, JPMorgan Chase became the successor to the remaining banking operations connected with the former Ahmanson group.

Howard Fieldstad Ahmanson founded H. F. Ahmanson & Co. in 1927 in California while still a student at the University of Southern California. The company initially specialized in casualty insurance and became a major California underwriter. Its business model benefited from the financial distress of the Great Depression, when foreclosures created demand for insurance and related services. In 1943, Ahmanson acquired control of National American Insurance Company in Omaha, restoring a family connection to the institution. The company’s long-term identity was established in 1947 through the purchase of Home Building and Loan Association, a small thrift with less than $1 million in assets. Ahmanson paid $162,000 and used the institution as the base for a consolidation strategy. Eighteen additional institutions were acquired during the next decade and combined under the Home Savings and Loan name. The postwar California housing boom supplied strong demand for mortgages and deposits, allowing the group to become a major regional financial institution. During the 1950s and 1960s, Ahmanson expanded into banking, title insurance, life insurance, and trust services. Its mortgage-insurance relationships attracted an antitrust investigation in the mid-1950s, but the inquiry was dropped. When regulation changed the permissible structure of financial holding companies, Ahmanson sold Ahmanson Bank in 1976 while retaining trust operations. The company also responded to weakness in single-family housing by increasing apartment lending from 1965 onward. Howard Ahmanson died of a heart attack in Belgium on June 17, 1968. His nephew William H. Ahmanson succeeded him as head of the private holding company, while Richard Deihl continued to lead Home Savings. The group maintained a reputation for quiet and conservative management. Tax legislation in 1969 led to stock offerings that reduced concentrated foundation holdings, but the company remained financially substantial. In the 1970s it expanded the geographic reach of its thrift network as federal rules eased restrictions on holding-company acquisitions and branch-area lending. The 1980s brought national expansion. Institutions in Florida, Missouri, Texas, Illinois, New York, Ohio, Arizona, and Washington were merged into the Home or Savings of America network. In 1988, the company acquired New York’s Bowery Savings Bank. Ahmanson Mortgage Company also opened lending offices in many states. Richard H. Deihl’s management emphasized operating efficiency, strict residential underwriting, and avoidance of speculative junk bonds. This positioned the group relatively well during the late-1980s thrift crisis. Ahmanson continued buying troubled thrifts and branches in the early 1990s, including assets from institutions handled by the Resolution Trust Corporation. The California recession reduced earnings and increased nonperforming real-estate assets, although the company remained a significant thrift operator. In 1998, Washington Mutual acquired the company and Home Savings of America. The transaction ended H. F. Ahmanson & Co. as an independent financial group. Washington Mutual’s later failure in 2008 placed the successor banking operations with JPMorgan Chase.

1. 1998Acquired by Washington Mutual

   Washington Mutual purchased H. F. Ahmanson & Co. and Home Savings of America.

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2. 1988Bowery Savings Bank acquired

   Ahmanson strengthened its New York presence by acquiring the New York City thrift.

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3. 1983Richard H. Deihl becomes chairman and CEO

   Deihl formalized the group’s emphasis on cost control and conservative mortgage underwriting.

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4. 1976Ahmanson Bank sold

   The bank was divested in response to the Bank Holding Company Act, while trust operations were retained.

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5. 1968Founder dies

   Howard Ahmanson died while traveling in Belgium; William H. Ahmanson succeeded him in leading the holding company.

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6. 1957Ahmanson Bank and Trust established

   The group expanded its financial-services portfolio into banking and trust activities.

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7. 1947Home Building and Loan Association acquired

   The purchase created the foundation for the future Home Savings network.

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8. 1943National American Insurance control acquired

   Ahmanson acquired control of National American Insurance Company in Omaha.

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9. 1927Company founded

   Howard Fieldstad Ahmanson established H. F. Ahmanson & Co., initially as a casualty-insurance business.

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A conservative, acquisition-driven American thrift and financial-services holding company centered on residential real-estate lending, deposit gathering, and insurance.

• Home Savings of AmericaSavings and loan1947

  The group’s principal thrift network, built through the consolidation of Home Building and Loan Association with numerous acquired institutions. It gathered deposits and concentrated on residential mortgages, refinancing, and multifamily-property lending. During the 1980s and 1990s, the network expanded from California into several other U.S. regions.

• Savings of AmericaSavings and loan1981

  A name used for parts of Ahmanson’s out-of-state thrift network. It supported the group’s interstate expansion through mergers, branch acquisitions, and direct-mail deposit campaigns in markets including Texas, Illinois, Missouri, and Florida.

• Ahmanson Mortgage CompanyMortgage lending

  A multistate mortgage-lending operation established to extend Ahmanson’s loan business beyond its branch-based thrift network. Lending offices operated in numerous states and were supported by regional loan-servicing centers.

• Casualty insuranceInsurance1927

  The company’s original line of business. H. F. Ahmanson & Co. became a leading California casualty underwriter before the holding company increasingly centered its strategy on savings, mortgage finance, and related financial services.

• Title and life insuranceInsurance1958

  The group expanded its insurance activities through National American Title Insurance Company and National American Life Insurance Company of California, complementing its mortgage and deposit businesses.

• 1980Interstate direct-mail deposit campaigns

  United States

  During expansion outside California, Ahmanson used direct-mail promotions to attract deposits to its Savings of America operations. Campaigns in markets such as Texas were reported as particularly effective.

  Outcome. The campaigns supported rapid deposit growth and helped the group compete in newly entered markets.

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• 1998Sale to Washington MutualM&A

  Ahmanson remained a large thrift group but faced the strategic pressures of consolidation in U.S. banking.

  What changed. The company accepted Washington Mutual’s acquisition of H. F. Ahmanson & Co. and Home Savings of America.

  Aftermath. Ahmanson ceased operating as an independent company, and Washington Mutual became a major California banking institution.

  transaction value. approximately $10 billion (1998)

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• 1980Avoidance of junk-bond strategiesStrategy

  Many savings and loans pursued higher returns through risky securities during the 1980s.

  What changed. Under Richard H. Deihl, Ahmanson retained a conservative mortgage-focused investment approach instead of heavily pursuing junk bonds.

  Aftermath. The group was comparatively resilient when numerous thrifts failed between 1988 and 1990.

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• 1965Shift toward apartment lendingStrategy

  Weakness in California’s tract-housing market and broader pressure on savings and loans increased the risks of relying exclusively on single-family mortgages.

  What changed. Ahmanson increased lending to apartment buildings as a buffer against deterioration in the single-family housing market.

  Aftermath. The strategy helped the company limit exposure to some of the problems that affected less diversified thrifts.

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• 2008Washington Mutual fails and JPMorgan Chase becomes successor

  Following Washington Mutual’s collapse, JPMorgan Chase became the successor to banking operations linked to the former Ahmanson group.

  BankruptcyM&A
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• 1998Washington Mutual acquires H. F. Ahmanson & Co.

  Washington Mutual purchased H. F. Ahmanson & Co. and its Home Savings unit, ending the company’s independent existence.

  M&A
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1. H. F. Ahmanson & Co.