Daily Briefing Weekend Edition

Integration Important when Picking a New Vendor

By Anthony Garritano

When Shea Mortgage decided to outsource document services, looking for a system that would integrate smoothly with their current loan origination system, Del Mar DataTrac, and provide security checks for compliance, were top priorities. "We were to change document vendors in 2005. We just wanted to see what else was out there," explained Kathy Thomas, senior vice president of operations at Shea. We looked at three companies and chose DocuTech. The implementation was quick and easy. We liked the implementation flow. "We reduced errors significantly by making the change. We also increased productivity for closers. We did 30 closes per person per month prior, now we do 90 per person per month. Internally, due to our system, our closers both close and fund the loan. It's one job here."

DocuTech's ConformX is an online document and compliance system that guarantees all loan document packages are compliant with all federal, state and investor requirements. During the implementation process, Shea Mortgage required customization of the product for their workflow. "The real cost savings was in man power," said Ms. Thomas. "We had six closers doing 30 a month and now we've tripled our capacity. There are also fewer errors. We had a lot of document errors prior. We feel like if we need a new form, for example, the new vendor is always willing to listen. Also, if we want to do something different they entertain our thoughts."

In the two years Shea Mortgage has been using ConformX, they report a significant improvement in their closers' productivity and a reduction in error rates. Ms. Thomas specifically pointed to the time saved by staff no longer having to re-key information into ConformX that has already been entered. On average, Ms. Thomas said her staff reports saving an average of 20 to 30 minutes per file over their former document system. Ms. Thomas also said that they have been able to increase productivity by 40 percent since implementing ConformX. "We started with closing documents. As a result of good performance, we moved to front-end disclosures too," she said. "Loan counselors do our disclosures and the printing and shipping slowed them down. We used to do disclosures through Calyx Point and if there was an error it still went out. We still use Point but DocuTech kicks it back to us if there's an error. "We're looking at e-signature capabilities now. We want to do e-signatures on disclosures and closing docs. That's coming out in the fourth quarter with DocuTech. We're also going to allow our borrowers to preview closing docs online prior to closing."