Mortgage technology

The nearly three-year-long legal battle between Ellie Mae and DocMagic may be close to a resolution, according to recently filed court documents.

Demand, as a rule, leads to innovative business strategies. It is pressuring specialized vendors and other third-party servicers to strategize their business improvements so they can fill the gap created by the banks.

Citing a lack of transparency for both consumers and mortgage professionals, Experience 1 Inc. and its operating units Advantage Title and Title365 have come out with a new online platform Title365.com.

Warehouse club Costco Wholesale started partnering with banks to offer mortgage services online last year, and it wants to get into auto lending and, perhaps, student loans.

Davis Henderson, the Canadian technology company that acquired online point of sale vendor Mortgagebot for a staggering $232 million last year, completed the acquisition of loan origination system vendor Avista Solutions for $40 million, the company announced Thursday.

Going paperless makes sense because it cuts costs and grows business.

A new Federal Housing Finance Agency initiative will require the government-sponsored enterprise to create a common data standard and new servicing form under the Uniform Mortgage Data Program.

Ellie Mae nearly doubled its revenue in the first quarter of 2012, turning net income of $3.6 million, compared to a net loss of $800,000 in the year-over-year quarter.

Quicken Loans Inc. plans to increase staffing at its Cleveland Web Center by at least 25%, as the company will add 100 new employees to the more than 300 already working at the location.

From time to time I hear appraisers talk about the fact that they feel undervalued, and that the business they’re in is becoming increasingly difficult. Some feel it’s a downright hostile environment for appraisers today.

There was a lot of shock, sadness, and yes, grief here at SourceMedia at the recent passing of Neil Morse. We knew Neil as a gifted mortgage writer, an indefatigable road warrior, a thoroughly professional public relations executive, and finally as a colleague for his work with our conference group. He died way too soon (he was 62). But he had an impressive life.

ISGN Corp., Melbourne, Fla., hired Matthew Mesmer as associate general counsel with a focus on regulatory compliance, corporate compliance, ethics, risk management and operational compliance.

Experience 1 Inc., a holding company for two title insurance providers, named former LPS executive Eric Swenson chairman.

LendingQB, Costa Mesa, Calif., named Brian Smith to its business development team.

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s director of industry standards is leaving the trade group, less than six months after the MBA resumed running the day-to-day operations of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization.

After the conclusion of a successful pilot program, the Internal Revenue Service is planning to roll out the production version of its electronic signature capabilities for Form 4506-T by the end of 2012, according to officials who detailed the plans during the MBA tech show in Phoenix this week.

Ellie Mae said that Cathleen Schreiner Gates has joined the company as senior vice president of sales and client services.

ISGN Corp., Melbourne, Fla., hired Jennifer Fulks and as associate general counsel with a focus on regulatory compliance, corporate compliance, ethics, risk management and operational compliance.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is relying on an emphasis on standardized data to manage complaints it receives about mortgage industry participants and other rule making and regulatory activities.

Until recently, the deterioration of properties didn’t pique the interest of servicing agencies until it was clearly designated REO and, until recently, this was all well and good. But the winds have changed.