Mortgage technology

Stewart has launched TouchSign technology, which converts the traditional closing table from pen and paper to digital documents and touch screens. The Touch-to-Close system will begin deploying through Stewart's network of offices and agencies this month. Stewart's TouchSign solution allows consumers to perform the real estate closing by the touching of a finger to the computer screen in compliance with applicable regulations. Consumers are able to navigate through their closing documents by tapping the TouchSign screens to provide their consent and signature for closing documents. The TouchSign kiosk is designed to work with Stewart's eClosingRoom technology. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.stewart.com.

Integra Software Systems, Franklin, Tenn., has announced that it will integrate with Compliance Systems Inc.'s IntelleDoc Solutions to provide a single source for document preparation and compliance services. Integra's recent entry into the commercial and consumer lending space created the requirement to provide a single source for its lender clients to prepare docs. One of the advantages of CSi's technology is the ability to map data fields to a single schema. CSi IntelleDoc Solutions include a line of software compliance components incorporating static and dynamic document libraries, automated document selection, customized disclosures, a document customization tool, and compliance support for all states and all types of lending transactions. The companies can be found online at http://www.integra-online.com and http://www.compliancesystems.com.

While it has always been difficult to get a handle on the size of the mortgage fraud problem, a new report by a leading provider of fraud detection products indicates that the incidence of the crime may be much greater than anyone thinks. Analysts at Interthinx, Agoura Hills, Calif., say they found more than 42,000 mortgage applications in the second half of last year that contained significant misrepresentations of the borrowers' incomes. In total, the loans were worth nearly $11 billion. "I have no idea how many of the loans were funded, but I hope none of them," Ann Fulmer, the company's vice president of industry relations, said at the Mortgage Bankers Association's National Fraud Issues Conference in Chicago, where the six-month analysis was released. The questionable loans were discovered by Interthinx' income alert program, which warns clients that a borrower has submitted multiple loan applications and his income has jumped by at least 15% over a prescribed period. "Fraud is like water -- it always seeks the lowest level," Ms. Fulmer said. "That's why it is finding ways around the barriers lenders set up to uncover them." The company can be found on the Web at http://www.interthinx.com.

After 20 years with what is now Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, Roger Gudobba has joined Compliance Systems Inc., Grand Rapids, Mich., as the company's chief strategy officer. Mr. Gudobba was most recently a senior principal with Wolters Kluwer, where he was instrumental in developing and maintaining business relationships. In addition, he was a key contributor to the success of VMP Mortgage Forms, now part of Wolters Kluwer Financial. In 2004, Mr. Gudobba was the recipient of Mortgage Technology magazine's Steve Fraser Award. Compliance Systems, an automated document compliance provider, can be found on the Web at http://www.comliancesystems.com.

First American Credco, a Poway, Calif.-based provider of specialty credit reports to the mortgage and consumer finance industries, has launched Connect Web services technology to enable smoother integrations. Connect provides a secure electronic interface to a wide range of new products available from First American Credco, including identity validation, compliance, and consumer credit solutions. One of the most notable additions available on the Connect interface is the electronic automation of Anthem, First American Credco¹s nontraditional mortgage credit report and scoring system for loan applicants having little or no traditional credit history. The company, which is part of First Advantage Corp., can be found on the Web at http://www.facredco.com.

InsideValuation, a real estate valuation company based in Reno, Nev., has announced a partnership with International Financing Engineering Group, Rockville, Md., that has created a ZIP code-level mortgage default projection. The two companies offer combined access to millions of recent loan histories and "a large quantity" of subprime loan default information, according to InsideValuation. "This product presently allows mortgage risk managers to determine the relative safety of loans based on econometric and demographic variables relating to property location, such as median home price, median household income, affordability, unemployment, and rent-versus-price ratios," the company said. InsideValuation can be found online at http://www.insidevaluation.com.

BMC Software Investments Inc., an investment firm based in Hot Springs, Ark., has announced the acquisition of Loan-Score Decisioning Systems LLC, an Irvine, Calif.-based provider of automated underwriting systems. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Loan-Score's products include an enterprise-class AU system, a product/pricing engine, a PDA-based pre-qual application, a bulk pricing application, and point-of-sale Web portals for all lending channels and product types, BMC said. The company said it plans to develop new offerings, expand Loan-Score's infrastructure, and hire additional development staff. "What has happened to the mortgage industry over the past year is unprecedented," said William McCord, chief executive officer of BMC Software Investments and chairman of Loan-Score. "Several AUS vendors have already closed their doors and a number of others are in trouble, which creates an opportunity for Loan-Score to dominate the AU space given the right investment partner." Loan-Score can be found online at http://www.loan-score.com.

TSS Software Corp., a software provider to the settlement services industry, has announced enhancements to its flagship product, TitleExpress. Among the enhancements are integrations with Calyx's Point loan origination system, reporting for United General Title Insurance Co., and the addition of iOrderOpen. TSS said the enhancements were all driven by customer requests. Versions 6.0 and higher of Calyx Software's Point will allow mortgage brokers to export data directly from Calyx to title companies using TitleExpress and iOrderExpress as the connection engines, TSS said. The addition of the iOrderOpen interface facilitates the automated submittal of orders and the conversion of external data sources into TitleExpress. TSS can be found online at http://www.iwanttss.com, and Calyx can be found at http://www.calyxsoftware.com.

ICBA Mortgage, the mortgage corporation of the Independent Community Bankers of America, and its partner Taylor, Bean Whitaker Mortgage Corp. have unveiled their newest product offering for community banks: Complete Mortgage Solutions. CMS gives ICBA member banks access to "consultative services that deliver a comprehensive blueprint for mortgage success -- from operational workflow, staffing, and training to technology, marketing, and mortgage products," said Terry Jorde, chairman of ICBA Mortgage and president and chief executive of CountryBank USA, Cando, N.D. Steve Reukhaus, CMS project manager at Taylor Bean, said the new product "can help community bankers streamline their mortgage operations, improve efficiencies, and explore new possibilities for growth and profitability." ICBA Mortgage can be found online at http://www.icbamortgage.com, and Taylor Bean can be found at http://www.taylorbean.com.

REO Sentinel, Jacksonville, Fla., has announced the introduction of a technology that offers "an inexpensive but high-value solution" to the problem of monitoring and maintaining presale and real-estate-owned properties. Rich Rollins, chief executive officer of the company, said the device, also called REO Sentinel, was developed in conjunction with loan servicers and a property inspection and preservation company. "For the first time, lenders and their property preservation managers can have real-time views into what is occurring in every defaulted property they are trying to market thanks to a small, patented device installed in each house," Mr. Rollins said. ".... [REO Sentinel] can detect many types of gases, the presence of smoke and high humidity conditions, and even takes a photo of anyone entering the property." The company can be found online at http://www.reosentinel.com.

First Florida Financial Group LLC, Fort Myers, Fla., has launched a program under CashToolBox.com aimed at helping builders and Realtors sell more properties by enabling borrowers to get a mortgage approval through the use of equity in their owned properties, or a relative's. Eddie Hoskins, president and chief executive officer of First Florida, said CashToolBox.com lends 125% LTV Pre-Closing Cash against a property's equity by using Mortgage Approval Tools such as the Credit Score Optimizer, Down Payment Assistance Gifter, Cash Reserves Booster, and Debt-to-Income Reducer. "When they generate needed cash and apply their 'tools' to un-approvable mortgage loan applications, in many cases they're able to get a loan approval and closing that had seemed impossible," Mr. Hoskins said. The company can be found online at http://www.cashtoolbox.com.

Home values continued to decline in the fourth quarter, falling 3.5% on a quarterly basis and 3.0% on a year-over-year basis, according to Zillow.com, an online real estate community based in Seattle. Zillow's quarterly home value report, which has been expanded to cover 125 metropolitan areas, found that home values stood at a Zindex home value indicator of $224,890, representing the median estimated valuation of all homes in an area. "With consecutive declines over the past five quarters, we haven't seen the housing market bottom yet, and it may very well get worse before things get better," said Stan Humphries, Zillow's vice president of data and analytics. "Even many markets that have been largely insulated from recent declines, like some in the Pacific Northwest, reported notable value declines in the fourth quarter." Zillow can be found online at http://www.zillow.com.

AllRegs, an information provider for the mortgage lending industry, has announced that its Ask the Expert--Legal Content Support Services will be offered through Smith Dollar PC, a mortgage banking law firm based in Santa Rosa, Calif. Eligible AllRegs subscribers will have unlimited access to Smith Dollar attorneys who can offer clarification on federal and state laws and regulations that reside in AllRegs' Information Service, AllRegs said. Smith Dollar is a California law firm that represents lenders and secondary-market investors in matters relating to mortgage fraud, lender liability, and regulatory compliance. AllRegs said Legal Content Support Service was created to help mortgage companies clarify the numerous changes in federal, state, and other regulations that affect the mortgage business.

The National Association of Mortgage Brokers has rolled out a trio of six-hour online professional training programs designed to help its members earn their Lending Integrity Seal of Approval. NAMB requires all members to meet the requirements to earn the seal by 2009. TrainingPro, Hunt Valley, Md., developed the courses. "These new classes reinforce NAMB's ongoing commitment to the highest level of professional ethics," said NAMB president George Hanzimanolis. "By making the classes available online, TrainingPro has made the high standards of the Lending Integrity Seal attainable for all brokers and originators." All three courses have a two-hours ethics component. Course 1 also discusses fair lending and consumer privacy, Course 2 covers FHA lending and Course 3 talks about recent industry developments and mortgage fraud. "Now, more than ever, it is essential that mortgage brokers, originators and other financial professionals have the continuing education they need to serve their customers," said Chris Nickerson, chief executive of TrainingPro. For more information about NAMB and the Lending Seal of Approval, visit http://www.namb.org/ and http://www.lendingintegrity.org/.

While many see the shrinking lender and vendor market as a bad sign, Scott Cooley, president of Cooley Consulting, told the 11th annual SourceMedia Mortgage Technology Conference that industry consolidation presents great opportunities for buyers with a long-term view to enter the market. Mr. Cooley warned that there are signs that a technology vendor isn't doing well. "They get real quiet: no updates, newsletters, their website is stagnant, etc.," he said. "Their support personnel are mostly gone. Press releases and joint venture announcements disappear. There's poor communications with compliance updates. Sales/collection calls get more aggressive. And finally, rumors start to circulate." But Mr. Cooley said times like these are good for companies looking to enter the mortgage market. "Yes, every lender is shedding licenses, and vendors are dropping like flies, but the best time to invest is when everyone else won't," he declared. "When you're at the bottom, there's no place to go but up. Times like these are rare: VC firms are starting to swarm, and technology vendors are hungry for sales." Silicon Valley, Calif.-based Cooley Consulting can be found on the Web at http://www.scooley.com.

Rahul Merchant, Fannie Mae's chief information officer, told attendees at the 11th Annual SourceMedia Mortgage Technology Conference in Orlando, Fla., that a variety of market factors will prompt lenders to look closer at certain types of technology. "Today there are lower earnings and capital scarcity, but there's also a need to operate in real time with better analytics, make productivity improvements, prevent security threats, and improve infrastructure," he said. So what impact will this have on information technology budgets? "In 2008, IT budgets are likely to grow slightly, but slower than in recent years," Mr. Merchant answered. "The Corporate Executive Board's CIO survey estimates that IT budgets will grow by 3.5% (1.5% above inflation). Further, Gartner projects a 3% increase over 2006." He predicted that lenders will be looking hard at technology to improve credit risk management, improve decisions through more precise and timely business information, implement early warning reports and credit loss metrics, make productivity/infrastructure improvements, and look toward architectural simplification. "Lenders still have to look to enable business growth," Mr. Merchant concluded. "So, they'll allocate a greater share of IT budget to business growth investments and innovation."

A common theme expressed by many at the 11th Annual SourceMedia Mortgage Technology Conference was that lenders in the current down market need to use technology to reinvent the way mortgages are done. "Now is the time to re-examine your business model," said Chris Jabbal, former chief information officer at Washington Mutual. "From there, lenders have to decide how they can support that business model and apply technology to be more efficient. One big focus in the market today is a shift to automating the back end by doing more concrete disclosures on 100% of loans." Joe Dahleen, senior vice president in the strategy recovery group at online lender SRGi, added: "Now is a great time for lenders to look closely at the process and change it, using automation to be ready for the new mortgage market that will emerge after this downturn subsides. We have to think differently about how we lend, to improve the process for everyone involved."

TVC Capital, a San Diego-based private equity fund focused on software acquisitions and investments, has acquired Del Mar DataTrac from Fiserv just two years after Fiserv originally acquired the product. Interestingly, Jeb Spencer, managing partner at TVC, served as Del Mar's executive chairman from 2003 to 2005, during which time the company's customer base more than tripled. Veteran company employee Rob Katz has rejoined Del Mar and will help lead the ownership transition. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. Fiserv will now focus more on its core business, which prompted the sale. "This divestiture further demonstrates Fiserv's focus on its core financial and insurance businesses and its Fiserv 2.0 goals of helping clients to achieve best-in-class status," said Tom Warsop, president of Fiserv's Financial Institutions Group. With over 15 years of industry presence, Del Mar DataTrac has been a provider of back-office lending solutions. Del Mar serves over 300 mortgage banking firms throughout the United States.

Ellie Mae, a Dublin, Calif.-based provider of software for the mortgage industry, has announced the release of Encompass Banker Edition 3.0 and Encompass Custom Edition 3.0. Custom Edition offers "extensive configurability" in a loan origination system, and Banker Edition is "a complete end-to-end business solution" designed for small to midsize correspondent mortgage lenders, mortgage bankers, community bankers, credit unions, and brokers interested in becoming bankers, Ellie Mae said. Most of the system enhancements will benefit both editions of Encompass. "Now, mortgage bankers can service loans prior to selling loans on the secondary market, track their profitability on trades, and configure notifications that alert them of key servicing activities, such as when statements must be sent out, when accounts go past due, and when they're scheduled to make upcoming disbursements," said Jonathan Corr, chief strategy officer for Ellie Mae. The company can be found online at http://www.elliemae.com.

Vienna, Va.-based VirPack, has released VirPack Vault, a hosted Web-based document management and electronic loan delivery platform designed to satisfy the needs of lenders and brokers from origination through post closing and investor delivery. VirPack Vault supports electronic delivery of credit, closed, trailing and all portions of a loan file to over a dozen investors and due-diligence providers. VirPack electronic deliveries are fully indexed and conform to each investor's imaging specifications, facilitating purchase review and eliminating non-indexed (blob) electronic delivery delays. The VirPack Vault platform is the product of the recent partnership between VirPack and Critical Technologies, a records-management company specializing in the mortgage industry. VirPack can be found on the Web at http://www.virpack.com.