Adjusted expenses were up 12% sequentially due in part to the increased client activity in the quarter. For the full year, mortgage delivered core profitability driven by a 35% reduction in core expenses. Revenue declined modestly as growth in net interest income was more than offset by a decline in fee income.
Core mortgage production income declined 47% year-over-year, however, mortgage servicing income more than doubled driven mainly by lower prepayments in the servicing portfolio in 2014. The adjusted tangible efficiency ratio declined from triple digits in 2013 to 74% in 2014. Over the past year, our core mortgage business demonstrated significant improvement. This progress was driven by a lot of heavy lifting to normalize our cost base and improve our risk profile.
Most of that’s now complete and I’m optimistic we’ll be able to more firmly focus on the core strategies in place to meet for client needs and drive higher revenue and deliver incremental efficiency improvement.
So before we begin the Q&A part of the call, I’d like to take a moment to highlight our accomplishments during the year.
So coming into 2014 we faced several meaningful revenue headwinds, namely the end of the mortgage re-fi boom and the on-going impact of prolonged low rate environment on net interest margin. However, we remain focused on the commitments we made to our stakeholders and we delivered on those goals. For our clients, we increased investments in people and enhanced capabilities to better anticipate and serve their needs. For our teammates, we invested more in training and opportunities to improve their own financial well-being. For our local communities, we continue to support economic growth through purposeful investments, active partnerships, and volunteer commitment. Our 2014 United Way campaign was the most successful in the Company’s history with teammates donating nearly $6.5 million. And for our shareholders, we delivered strong efficiency performance and a significant improvement in asset quality, the result of which was 18% earnings growth and a 10 basis point improvement in ROA. In addition, we more than doubled our capital return.
Separately, we were able to resolve several outstanding legacy mortgage matters and this quarter’s legal provision expense is another important step in that process. And then finally, for all the teammates on this call, I’d like to thank them for what they’ve done and continue to do to transform our Company.
We’re unified in our purpose of lighting the way to financial well-being for our clients and our communities and our on-going drive toward delivering improved performance for our shareholders. So, teammates, thank you. And Ankur, let me turn that back over to you.
Ankur Vyas
Thanks, Bill. Brad, we’re now ready to begin the Q&A portion of the call.
As we do so, I’d like to ask the participants to please limit yourselves to one primary question and one follow-up so that we can accommodate as many of you as possible today.
Operator
Thank you, sir. And our first question will come from Matt O’Connor of Deutsche Bank. Your line is open.
Matt O’Connor, Deutsche Bank
Good morning.
Bill Roger
Good morning, Matt.
Aleem Gillan
Hey, Matt.
Matt O’Connor
I was wondering if you could elaborate on the strategy of trying to optimize the balance sheet by some of the loans that you’re selling or moving to held for sale or just the kind of approach you’re taking in terms of the criteria to evaluate the loans.
Bill Rogers
Certainly, Matt.
I guess the first criteria is whether these are single service clients or they’re sort of multi-product clients and to the extent that they’re single service clients, that makes these loans more eligible for loans that we might be willing to sell.
