Mortgage technology

Lydian Data Services, Boca Raton, Fla., has established Lydian Data Government Services, a new fully integrated subsidiary to provide mortgage processing, closing, post-closing and quality control services for FHA and VA loans. This rapidly expanding sector of mortgage lending has been hampered by a lack of expertise in processing government loans, leading to long delays in loan approvals and fundings. The new subsidiary will also offer consulting services to help originators become approved by the Federal Housing Administration, and training services to help lenders familiarize their Realtors, loan officers and brokers with government lending programs. Lydian Data Government Services is based in the greater Philadelphia area, selected for its proximity to one of the country's largest FHA homeownership centers and the depth of its government lending labor pool. The Government Accounting Office expects FHA to fund 10% of home purchases in 2008 and 15% in 2009, continuing to levels not seen in over a decade, which is why Lydian has launched this new subsidiary to help lenders automate the process.

Enterprise content management vendor Hyland Software, Cleveland, has acquired Liberty Information Management Systems to expand its market presence. The transaction was private, and terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Hyland said the acquisition will enable it to add more than 1,000 Liberty IMS client organizations to its base of 7,200 customers and extend its reseller channel base with an established network of Liberty IMS channel partners, who possess expertise in selling and supporting document imaging, COLD/ERM, and workflow systems to organizations in Hyland's target vertical markets. The company also said the move would broaden its presence in the western United States and central Canada by maintaining Liberty IMS's offices and an existing team of experienced ECM professionals in Costa Mesa, Calif., and Ottawa, Ontario. Moreover, as a heavily channel-focused organization, Liberty IMS brings to Hyland an established network of channel partners. Hyland can be found on the Web at http://www.onbase.com.

Reverse Mortgage Solutions, Houston, has reported the completion of a $25 million Ginnie Mae fixed-rate home equity conversion mortgage-backed securitization on which it served as issuer, servicer, and master servicer. Bob Yeary, chief executive officer of RMS, told MortgageWire that Ginnie Mae has identified the transaction as the first reverse MBS on which a single company has taken on all three of the aforementioned roles, something the Houston-based firm's automation helped it to do. World Alliance Financial, the Melville, N.Y.-based affiliate of KBC Bank, Brussels, originated the reverse mortgages in the transaction, Mr. Yeary said.

MicroBilt Corp., Kennesaw, Ga., and Annapolis, Md.-based PRBC have announced a planned merger of payment data to help small to medium-size companies do more business with consumers who have thin credit histories. The data will be merged in PRBC's data repository, and MicroBilt will make an equity investment in PRBC under the arrangement. The companies said the credit crunch is forcing smaller businesses to be very cautious in originating new loans, making it "more difficult than ever" for consumers with thin (or no) established credit histories to qualify for competitive rates. "PRBC has done a tremendous job in developing methods and systems of aggregating nonreported bill payment data to help consumers demonstrate good payment track records and qualify for credit at competitive rates," said MicroBilt chairman Bob Raleigh. "By combining PRBC's data with the trade line data reported to MicroBilt by thousands of smaller companies, we can help this large sector build credit histories and receive FICO Expansion scores much faster, and in turn [enable] businesses to grant more credit with less risk." The companies can be found online at http://www.microbilt.com and http://www.prbc.com.

ForeclosurePoint, Bellevue, Wash., has announced the nationwide launch of ForeclosurePoint.com, which it calls the only national foreclosure marketplace offering free access to full street addresses of more than 1.2 million foreclosure properties in the United States. Other foreclosure websites make users pay to see data that ForeclosurePoint.com provides free, the company said. "Below-market deals are virtually everywhere, but consumers still have a difficult time accessing the market," said Prakash Kondepudi, the company's president and chief executive officer. "Until today, investors, homebuyers, and real estate professionals had to pay to see even basic information about potential foreclosure opportunities." The company, based in the Seattle area, can be found on the Web at http://www.foreclosurepoint.com.

Citing a desire to help the mortgage industry combat fraud, Agoura Hills, Calif.-based Interthinx Inc. has announced its integration with MERS, the electronic registry for tracking ownership of mortgage loans and servicing rights. Data from MERS will be integrated into Interthinx's FraudGuard scoring system to detect undisclosed properties, reveal investors claiming owner occupancy, and uncover recently closed loans that could indicate a borrower's intent to commit mortgage fraud. The new feature allows FraudGuard users to automatically access the MERS database of registered real estate transactions to conduct automated searches (during the FraudGuard scoring process) for potential fraud before funding a loan. Interthinx is a provider of risk mitigation, mortgage fraud prevention, and regulatory compliance tools. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.iterthinx.com and http://www.mersinc.org.

AllRegs, a publisher of guidelines for the mortgage industry based in Eagan, Minn., has announced the release of three new online Practical Guides focused on mortgage servicing. The titles include Escrow Analysis, FHA Foreclosure, and Mortgage Servicing. Dan Thoms, senior vice president of AllRegs, said the guides "target issues of specific concern to today's mortgage servicing professionals." Practical Guides are searchable online instruction manuals for a given topic that use the AllRegs search engine with direct links to online regulations. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.allregs.com.

Wells Fargo Funding has announced the addition of two new vendors, SigniaDocs and Wave Systems, to its list of approved vendors capable of delivering the second-largest originator of electronic documents on behalf of lender clients. Wells is one of the first major lenders in the country to support a legally compliant process to accept a full initial disclosure package electronically from its sellers. It is also one of the first to ensure open standards and authorize correspondents to use any of the multiple vendors that pass Wells Fargo's review process to ensure a high level of security and an audit trail of the transaction showing borrower intent. Wells Fargo said its correspondents can now elect to use Wave's SmartSigning Room and SmartSignature applications to streamline e-disclosures and upfront documents to help secure customer commitment early in the lending process. Similarly, SigniaDocs offers Wells correspondents a private-label Web service requiring no initial start-up or ongoing hardware and software maintenance costs. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.wellsfargo.com, http://www.signiadocs.com, and http://www.wave.com.

Radian Guaranty, the Philadelphia-based primary mortgage insurance subsidiary of Radian Group, has introduced enhanced functionality to its MI Online Web-based system for mortgage insurance ordering, servicing, and claims submissions. Designed to streamline the claims process and improve the online experience, the enhancements allow clients to view claims around the clock, review documentation requirements, access a more detailed explanation of benefits, and obtain real-time information on payment status, the company said. The new features include a Claim Status Information section that allows clients to review a snapshot of a claim's details, including processing status, and a Claim Payment Information section that displays three key pieces of data for paid claims (claim payment, date paid, and payee) and a new hyperlink to the main Certificate Inquiry screen. The system can be found online at https://mionline.radianmi.com.

Freddie Mac has announced the renewal of an alliance agreement with the Credit Union National Association. The alliance provides participating credit unions with a comprehensive set of technological services, mortgage products, and correspondent lending, such as Freddie Mac's borrower outreach initiatives, according to the government-sponsored enterprise. "With the current economic climate, this renewed alliance ensures that credit unions will continue to have options to succeed in the mortgage lending market, including affordable lending solutions to meet the needs of low- to moderate-income borrowers," said Wes Millar, senior vice president of CUNA Strategic Services. The alliance provides expanding execution and mortgage product options; customized learning opportunities, such as assistance and training on low-downpayment mortgages; and technological advantages such as Freddie Mac's Loan Prospector automated underwriting service and a business-to-consumer website for online mortgage lending. Freddie can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.

Mortgage Builder Software, Southfield, Mich., has announced the creation of a western division for the sales of its products. The company has hired Kelli Himebaugh to manage sales in the new division. Ms. Himebaugh joined Milwaukee-based Guaranty Bank's home equity company in 2003, where she served as the sales manager for California, Arizona, and New Mexico. She later started the lender's correspondent division and ran the Pacific region until 2007. "We're having a great year despite the slower market," said Wendy Bennetts, Mortgage Builder's director of marketing and business development. "We opened the Southeast division last year and we anticipate opening another region later this year in response to the increased demand we're experiencing." The company can be found on the Web at http://www.mortgagebuilder.com.

Fiserv Inc., Brookfield, Wis., has released "pre-emptive mortgage default resources" that enable financial institutions to identify and contact troubled borrowers with customized repayment options. The resources, Predictive Risk Index Score Modeling and Home Retention Solutions, focus on helping financial institutions forecast delinquencies before defaults occur and provide expanded customer care to offer refinancing and negotiate workable resolutions. The PRISM analysis classifies at-risk assets into tiers, taking into consideration many data points, including the Fiserv Case Shiller Home Price Index, loan servicing data, risk grade and credit, collateral, and overall risk scores. After an analysis is complete, financial institutions may decide to have Fiserv perform more detailed loan-level risk analyses on identified accounts. This process requires no additional information from the financial institution and leverages the use of the PRISM data along with automated valuation models and other sources, the company said. Fiserv default management experts then review the findings and recommend steps financial institutions can take to mitigate loss and help borrowers remain in their homes. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.fiserv.com.

RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties, has announced a partnership with Bid4Homes, an online auction site specializing in distressed property, that enables RealtyTrac users to research and bid on a variety of online real estate auctions nationwide. RealtyTrac said the Bid4Homes proprietary Web-based applications and patented deposit system make it easy for real estate brokers, agents, real-estate-owned asset managers, and private sellers to list homes for auction on RealtyTrac. In addition to bank-owned properties and properties from private sellers, the Silver Spring, Md.-based Bid4Homes offers forfeited properties from the U.S. Marshals Service, seized properties from the Department of the Treasury, and tax-foreclosed properties from more than 50 counties nationwide. "Our users will now be able place online bids on properties being auctioned by Bid4Homes while never leaving the RealtyTrac website," said Rick Sharga, vice president of marketing at the Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac. The companies can be found online at http://www.realtytrac.com and http://www.bid4homes.com.

Del Mar DataTrac, San Diego, has expanded its open-platform approach and is now integrating with providers in the product and pricing eligibility and automated underwriting space. The company said it has decided to discontinue its PPE system, PriceTrac. The underlying technology for PriceTrac was provided by Merit Matrix (a company recently acquired by AllRegs) and Mortech. Del Mar DataTrac clients who were subscribing to PriceTrac are now working directly with Mortech, Del Mar said. In addition to working with AllRegs and Mortech, Del Mar DataTrac now has development agreements with several PPE system providers, including Optimal Blue, NYLX, and Sollen Technologies. For those clients seeking a PPE coupled with a comprehensive automated underwriting system, development agreements have been executed with Loan-Score Decisioning Systems and PriceMyLoan. Del Mar can be found on the Web at http://www.delmardb.com.

Seattle-based Go Financial Solutions has launched a 100% paperless process, starting with delivering a secure electronic disclosure service to their customers using SigniaDocs technology. The technology is offered as a private-label Web service, so it is easy to get up and running in a short period, the Houston-based SigniaDocs said. SigniaDocs will date and time-stamp the delivery of the documents and keep a full audit trail of all activity such as when the borrower opens, views, and electronically signs the documents. The technology keeps track of which function still needs to be performed and which documents still need to be signed, according to SigniaDocs. In addition, the platform supports full paper delivery if the lender does not get confirmation that the documents have been received or the borrower opts out and wants to receive paper documents. SigniaDocs can be found online at http://www.signiadocs.com.

NYLX, a provider of point-of-sale product eligibility and pricing technology systems for the mortgage industry, has entered an integration partnership with Mortgage Builder, a provider of end-to-end mortgage banking software. As a result, Mortgage Builder users will have seamless access to NYLX's loan product and pricing information, accessible directly from the Mortgage Builder system. LoanDecisions, NYLX's flagship product, can be used for point-of-sale applications or secondary-market functions, and helps users identify the most profitable loan product, adapt to market conditions in real-time, and keep up to date with products and guidelines, the company said. NYLX, based in Mt. Arlington, N.J., can be found on the Web at http://www.nylx.com, and Mortgage Builder, based in Southfield, Mich., can be found at http://www.mortgagebuilder.com.

The Ford Foundation has announced a $2 million grant to the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta to support new technology that allows credit counselors to speed up mortgage loan modifications. The foundation said the grant will enable the CCCS, which has piloted the new software platform, to increase its counseling staff by 80 employees and open another counseling facility in the Atlanta area. "Preventing foreclosure is beneficial to borrowers and lenders alike, yet confusion, delay, and distrust on both sides have often stood in the ways of sensible loan modifications," said Frank DeGiovanni, director of economic development at the Ford Foundation. "This new system is finally breaking down those barriers." The foundation said the grant is the first in a series of "major investments" that will address the foreclosure crisis. The organizations can be found online at http://www.fordfound.org and http://www.cccsinc.org.

Xerox Mortgage Services has added electronic signature and electronic vaulting capabilities to help lenders embrace a hybrid e-mortgage process. The enhancements build upon Xerox's Web-based BlitzDocs Collaboration Suite, which supports paper, imaged, and electronic loan documents. Mortgage participants can now sign home loans online by simply clicking on the document's signature line, Xerox said. Electronically signed documents are then securely managed and stored in an e-vault repository. Audit tracking detects where the documents travel to keep tabs on any transactions made during the loan's life cycle. Licensed through eSign Systems, a division of Wave Systems Corp., the electronic signature capabilities will help expand the BlitzDocs' network of mortgage participants,¬ giving users access to a larger pool of lending institutions and other service providers, Xerox said. Xerox Mortgage Services can be found online at http://www.xerox.com/mortgageservices.

Reverse Mortgage Solutions, Spring, Texas, has rolled out RM Compass, a loan origination system that it called the first front-end product built from the ground up specifically for the reverse mortgage origination process. RM Compass, an Internet-based Application Service Provider software system, is designed for both established reverse mortgage originators and new players, the company added. "This is one of those magical times in our industry that comes along only rarely when a new growth sector, customer demographics, and necessary technology combine to create an unparalleled opportunity for the right companies," said Robert D. Yeary, chairman and chief executive of RMS. This is especially important, he declared, "when you consider that the difference between originating a forward and reverse mortgage is like night and day, because of the former's counseling requirements, an extended 'gestation' period, more disclosures, complex calculations, and more." RMS chief information officer Kevin Gherardi added, "With RM Compass, originations can be fully integrated with a provider's servicing components in a real-time solution that exceeds what previously has been available."

A new loss mitigation assistance company aimed at helping homeowners prevent foreclosures has been formed in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The new company, Apply 2 Save.com, said it offers homeowners information on foreclosure laws around the country as well as on how the company can help them get the best workout plan for their situation. Loss mitigation specialists can help homeowners keep their properties by negotiating with their lenders to accept workout plans ranging from "accepting a simple repayment plan, to modifying payment terms, to performing what is called a 'short sale'," the company said. Apply 2 Save.com can be found on the Web at http://www.apply2save.com.