Flying to Boston for the MBA's conference? Here's a view you won't see. But probably a more important
question is, "Is your cyber secure?" The FFIEC just published some frequently asked questions about cybersecurity worth a read
for anyone who has a computer.
Another week, another settlement with the DOJ over FHA loans. First
American Mortgage Trust, which does business as NXTLoan.com, and CEO Barry
Polack, will pay $1.025 million to settle charges brought by the Department of
Justice, which accused the mortgage lender of submitting false claims on
mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration. Allegedly First
American ignored the FHA's due diligence requirements and falsely certified
that First American loans qualified for FHA insurance when they actually did
not - all at Polack's direction. The settlement also resolves allegations that
Polack falsely certified to the FHA that First American complied with quality
control requirements, and failed to report known loan defects. The company
joins Wells Fargo, Franklin American, Walter Investment, First Tennessee, First
Horizon National, M&T Bank, Freedom Mortgage, Regions Bank, BB&T...
Vendor news is alive and well heading into the MBA's
Boston conference next week.
Set your loan officers up for success in 2017. Lenders
One is launching a one-of-a-kind participative workshop designed exclusively
for its members to increase production and "set your
LOs up for success in 2017. With best practices from several top
200 originators and sustainable sales strategies led by key industry
veteran, Steve Scanlon, originators will participate in dialogue driven,
action-oriented experiential exercises designed to transform their work
culture. Attendees will not only walk away with the mindset of a world class
originator, but also a business plan focused on increasing
production in the new year. Click here to secure a spot for this December 8-9 workshop in
San Diego! Interested in learning more, stop by Trident Bookstore next
Monday or Tuesday during MBA in Boston to meet with the Lenders One team, or
contact Susan Malpocker. Interested
in membership with Lenders One? Contact Michael Kuentz.
STRATMOR has just released the October Issue of its STRATMOR Insights Report, which is filled with interesting
stuff like a piece by STRATMOR Senior Partner and founder Dr. Matt Lind that quantifies
the value of customer (borrower) retention. Dr. Matt's analysis shows that successful
borrower retention efforts can increase the servicing value of a new mortgage
by one-and-a-half to three times the usual value lenders ascribe to servicing.
This increase can then be used to fund price concessions and/or service
improvements, which can improve overall competitiveness and, in a positive
feedback loop, further increase the probability of retention and the ability to
fund additional price concessions and/or service improvements.
Based on its recently completed Spotlight Survey, Appraisal Process and Turn-Times, STRATMOR also
reports in the October Insights issue that, since TRID went into effect a year
ago, appraisal fees have increased by nearly 16% along with 79% and 81%
increases in appraisal turn-times for purchase and refinance loans
respectively. STRATMOR, however, cautions that sharply increase origination
volumes coupled with shortages of qualified appraisers undoubtedly account for
much of these increases.
Finally, STRATMOR reports on data from its industry-leading
MortgageSAT Borrower Satisfaction Program that revealed that the ways in
which mortgage lenders stay in touch with borrowers throughout origination
plays a large role in determining satisfaction. When borrowers have to take the
initiative, e.g., calling the lender for status updates, satisfaction falls
precipitously - to a score of 61 out of 100, the lowest among all of the
communication methods polled. Logging into a website, which also requires the
borrower to take the initiative, also scored relatively low (84 out of
100). Conversely, methods in which the lender takes the initiative, e.g.,
calling the borrower, sending an email, texting or updating status via a mobile
application, all resulted in scores above 90. You can view and download
STRATMOR's October Insights Report for free by clicking here.
Vantage Production LLC and Insellerate LLC have teamed up to introduce LoanCurve
which combines the power of InSellerate's advanced consumer direct lead and
pipeline management system with Vantage Production's VIP loan presentation and
marketing automation tools, readily enabling lenders to succeed while
minimizing costs. Vantage Production CEO Sue Woodard noted, "Consumer
direct lending is very different from traditional retail. The customers are
different, the tactics are different and the sales people and their needs are
different. With the technology provided by LoanCurve, lenders of all sizes can
now serve origination channels using industry-leading automation equipped with
interfaces suited to each set of unique end users."
Alight spread the word that it has more than doubled
its customer base since the start of 2016. Industry leaders like Guild and
First Guarantee have begun using its SaaS-based financial forecasting solution
and in recent news, the firm announced American Pacific Mortgage and
Midwest-based Cornerstone Mortgage joined as customers. "Why have more
than 30 mortgage banks jumped on board? With Alight, firm owners and CEOs have
immediate visibility into the financial implications that decisions and sudden
market changes will have on firm financials - cash and P&L - before those
decisions are made. Alight's cloud-based solution provides this visibility
anytime, anywhere and on any device." And if you're a mortgage bank firm
owner, CEO or senior finance professional attending the MBA's AFM conference in
San Diego, Alight invites you to be their guest at the 2nd Annual
Alight Mortgage Innovators event on November 14 - the day prior to the AFM
conference - for an afternoon of interactive sessions focused on innovative
ways to supercharge your firm. Visit alightinc.com/forum to register and get the details.
Seroka, providing brand development, marketing and
PR services to the mortgage industry, announced its new division, Seroka
Digital. The division will focus on the mortgage industry's need for true
NextGen digital communications leadership. "The buyer path to choosing a
company to work with is much more complex than it used to be. And, Millennials
have raised the bar, expecting more from brands than ever before," said John
Seroka, Principal. "Many companies are not properly leveraging online
channels to target their audiences. Seroka Digital is their answer for driving real
engagement and, most importantly, conversions."
Optimal Blue's robust enterprise
mortgage pricing service is now accessible to banks and mortgage originators
nationwide that utilize Roostify's innovative technology to deliver a
streamlined home lending experience to their borrowers and partners. This
strategic alliance of two technology experts will further accelerate and
demystify the home loan and closing experience. The combination of Optimal
Blue's expertise in pricing, along with the transparency and step-by-step
guidance in Roostify's loan application and closing processes, provides
increased efficiency and profitability through accurate and precise tools.
Sindeo announced the launch of its newest
technology, SindeoOne. Homebuyers and homeowners looking to
refinance can shop and compare over 1000 loan programs by filling out a single
application in just 5 minutes - saving them time as well as money, thanks
to the ability to find the loan that best suits their unique
needs. "SindeoOne guides borrowers through each step of the
application process, complete with tips to help them navigate each question and
understand how their choices impact their mortgage. Once the application is
complete, Sindeo automatically generates a credit report and initiates the
underwriting process, instantly verifying eligibility. Gone are the days of
completing endless "one off" applications -- Sindeo's integrated process
generates a single application that fulfills the needs of multiple lenders and
can be completed in as little as 5 minutes, from any device."
Snapdocs announced a new signing agent verification
feature to give mortgage lenders and title companies confidence in the
third-party vendors with whom they choose to work. "Pillar 4 of ALTA's
revised Best Practices establishes standards for managing and engaging
third-party signing professionals, including the requirement of keeping
critical documentation on file for an organization's entire signing agent
vendor database. infrequent notary searches. For companies without access to the premium Snapdocs online
platform, a free online resource has been launched to assist with infrequent
notary searches. The online search portal will identify notaries who have
gone through Snapdocs verification and satisfy the requirement of being able to
produce proof of Errors and Omissions insurance and a state license. In
addition, Snapdocs is offering companies a complimentary scan of their notary
database to identify notaries who may not satisfy the new ALTA Pillar 4
revisions."
Turning to the capital markets, most doubt that Congress will
actually act and remove Freddie and Fannie from under government
conservatorship in 2018. But there are moves afoot that are shifting the
risk away from the Agencies, and therefore away from taxpayers, to those
who will pay for it. Risk sharing, however, isn't for everyone... just ask Fannie Mae.
The private mortgage insurance companies in the United States
are keenly aware of risk sharing. USMI (acronym self-explanatory?) USMI
submitted some documents to the FHFA, which oversees Freddie and Fannie, on its
front-end CRT request for input. Here we have the comment letter, press release, and fact sheet on the comment letter.
People in capital markets know a little something about
mitigating risk. Interest rates are back to the "steady as she goes"
path, with little exciting news from overseas and even less here. As a proxy
for all rates, the yield on the 10-year T-note, which a few days ago was sitting
around 1.80%, is back to the mid 1.70% range closing Wednesday at 1.75%, and
Wednesday agency MBS prices closed a shade higher.
Overnight we've had, from Europe's Central Bank, no rate change
and nothing new out of its meeting. Here we've had weekly jobless claims from
last week (+13k to 260k, higher than forecast) and the Philly Fed Manufacturing
Survey (down to +9.7). Coming up are September's Existing Home Sales at 10AM
ET, as well as September Leading Indicators. After the ECB meeting and the U.S.
initial volley of numbers, the 10-year is at 1.75% with agency MBS prices a
tad better than late Wednesday.
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