Mortgage technology

CUNA Mutual Group, Madison, Wis., has announced a partnership with technology firm K/P Corp. and strategic consulting firm Raine Media to re-engineer its document imaging supply chain via a new Web portal.CUNA Mutual projects that re-engineering will deliver a $3 million cost savings in the first six months. Fourteen different platforms used by its various business units to create documents will be reduced to two, including a supporting platform. Optimization of CUNA Mutual's business processes is expected to eliminate more than 1.6 million pounds of paper annually. The main infrastructure component of the project is an Internet portal to be deployed in three phases, the last one to serve CU members directly. CUNA Mutual can be found online at http://www.cunamutual.com.

Livonia, Mich.-based Dynatek Inc. has formed a "tight integration" with DocuTech, Idaho Falls, Idaho, that Dynatek says will give users of its MORvision loan origination system seamless access to DocuTech's Web-based document system, ConformX.The agreement identifies DocuTech, which has been a member of Dynatek's Plug-In Partner Network since 2004, as a preferred integrated document provider. It also allows for development of a fully integrated DocuTech system, which will replace its current Plug-In and provide MORvision customers with a choice between two distinctive forms systems -- a traditional one and an online system that enables DocuTech to manage all the compliance for the lender. The DocuTech ConformX product is a service-based solution that provides users with compliance guarantees and manages the forms process for the lender. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.dynatek.com and http://www.docutech.com.

Interthinx, an Agoura Hills, Calif.-based ISO business that provides fraud detection and compliance tools for the mortgage industry, has announced ISO's acquisition of the Domus System, which provides automated compliance services to the affordable housing industry.The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The Domus System collects, maintains, and reports on resident and property data electronically. "The affordable housing industry has a tremendous need for accurate and timely compliance reporting," said KC West, president of Domus Systems Inc. "Combining the fraud detection capabilities of Interthinx with the electronic data collection services of the Domus System will deliver a more robust automated compliance and reporting tool to our customers." ISO, Jersey City, N.J., is a provider of products and services that help measure, manage, and reduce risk. The companies can be found online at http://www.interthinx.com, http://www.iso.com, and http://www.domussystems.com.

GMAC-RFC has picked LoanIQ from First American Real Estate Solutions as its collateral risk-mitigation tool.LoanIQ deals with collateral fraud, considered the most damaging form because it creates actual dollar losses. Using a predictive model based on actual "bad loan" cases, LoanIQ provides two scores to help GMAC-RFC and other lenders fast-track low-risk loans through the system while flagging high-risk loans for further examination, First American RES said. FBI statistics show that mortgage fraud losses more than doubled in 2005, from $429 million in 2004 to more than $1 billion, the company reported. GMAC-RFC will incorporate LoanIQ into its existing collateral risk-mitigation system. The companies can be found online at http://www.gmacrfc.com and http://www.firstamres.com.

Yahoo! Inc., Sunnyvale, Calif., has announced an "extensive" revamping of its Yahoo! Real Estate website to provide consumers with new tools and services to buy, sell, or rent a home.The revamped site combines a database of more than 3 million homes with interactive maps, access to millions of instant home valuations, and mortgage tools with access to local market rates, Yahoo! said. "We've found that house hunters are most interested in prices, proximity to schools and restaurants, financing options, and home values," said Andrew Braccia, vice president of search and marketplace at Yahoo! "By integrating our leading maps, local and search products into Yahoo! Real Estate, we are giving home seekers fast and easy access to the comprehensive information they need to make the right buying or renting decision." The revamped site can be found at http://realestate.yahoo.com.

Markit Group Ltd., London, a provider of data and services to the global financial markets, has announced the acquisition of Chasen Enterprises, a Peekskill, N.Y.-based provider of modeling for collateralized mortgage obligations and asset-backed securities.The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Markit said it will leverage Chasen's structured finance expertise to further develop its Reference Cashflow Database. Andrew Chasen, founder and president of Chasen, said Markit "has helped to build liquidity in the subprime residential mortgage market through ABX," a Markit calculator. Markit can be found on the Web at http://www.markit.com.

Conshohocken, Pa.-based MortgageHub has taken on a major investor -- ISGN Technologies Ltd., a global enterprise software company.ISGN is also part of the K.K. Birla Group, an Indian industrial group. The group runs professionally managed companies, with annual revenues of over $2 billion that have solid equity and capital market strength. The K.K. Birla Group is now investing in the U.S. mortgage market. On the other side of the deal, the move will extend MortgageHub's reach from servicing the top 10 lenders to offering its wholesale, retail, and correspondent lending platforms to a larger market base that will include the nation's top 80 lenders. Further details on the investment were not disclosed. MortgageHub can be found on the Web at http://www.mortgagehub.com.

SourceCorp Inc., a Dallas-based consultant and provider of business process outsourcing systems, has announced an expansion of its mortgage offerings.The new module, Electronic Loan Exchange, enables the secure electronic transfer of loan files between brokers, correspondents, servicers, and investors, the company said. It also employs an "electronic loan review room" where loans can be reviewed for due diligence before acquisition or electronic transfer to a buyer. The module represents the latest development of Fastrieve, SourceCorp's proprietary digital image repository. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.sourcecorp.com.

Countrywide has begun work on its implementation of a business rules management system by Pittsburgh-based Haley Systems Inc. to support the company's loan servicing systems.Haley has been selected by the loan servicing division of Countrywide Home Loans Inc., the principal subsidiary of Countrywide Financial Corp., Calabasas, Calif. Among Countrywide's key criteria in looking for the system, according to Haley, were: rules-authoring functionality decoupled from software development, so that business logic can be externalized from applications; a natural language interface that enables business decision-makers to manage business logic themselves using plain English rather than programming code; platform-independent high performance; and a platform-independent rules language. In addition, Haley's application will support Countrywide's heterogeneous platforms (including, for example, MS Windows, IBM AIX, and IBM AS/400). The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.countrywide.com and http://www.haley.com.

The Financial Services Technology Consortium, New York, has initiated a new project designed to authenticate financial institutions to consumers.The project will create one or more use cases and threat analyses that can be used to evaluate a set of technology solutions currently being developed by the IT and communications industries. Also, the project will define and create a test bed with a supporting test plan and evaluation criteria for testing and evaluating financial institutions authentication solutions against use cases defined by the project team. At present, FSTC is assembling the team for this project and is soliciting membership from across financial services, IT and communications industries. The organization can be found on the Web at http://www.fstc.org.

The home mortgage division of Chase is rolling out a new wholesale loan origination system, ChaseLoanCenter, which gives users access to the entire Chase loan process.Accessed with one password, the system gives users new functionality as well as replaces brokers' separate access to Advanced ChaseLock and ZiPPY. ChaseLoanCenter is being piloted currently with a small group of brokers and scheduled for deployment nationwide to all Chase Wholesale Lending brokers starting this fall. With ChaseLoanCenter, brokers can register and lock loans, submit loans for automated underwriting, deliver loans electronically, perform rate locks and extensions, and track loan progress. Enhanced features include rate relocks and extension online, access to closing calendars and retrieval of closing documents. ChaseLoanCenter will also replace the system used by Chase employees streamlining the operations and enabling real-time status, decisioning, and service ordering. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.jpmorganchase.com.

First American Real Estate Solutions has entered into a strategic alliance with, and purchased a 38% interest in, Australia/New Zealand property information provider RP Data Ltd. "Through this relationship, RP Data will be among the first companies to introduce automated valuation models in Australia and New Zealand," said George Livermore, president of FARES' corporate parent, The First American Corp. The First American Corp. can be found online at http://www.firstam.com, FARES can be found on the Web at http://www.firstamres.com and RP Data can be found online at http://www.rpdata.com.au.

A good six months earlier than many mortgage technology pundits predicted, Fidelity National Information Services Inc. has launched the .NET version of its Empower loan origination system.The move follows beta testing with National City Mortgage prior to implementation in that lender's correspondent division. Fidelity said the system, which includes smart-client and Web-client presentation layers, is fully functional and immediately operable. National City partnered with Fidelity on the project with the strategic objective of enabling straight-through processing of loans that require little human touch. Empower for .NET also leverages the Windows Workflow Foundation to automate workflow. According to the announcement, FIS is offering a "First Adopters" purchase and implementation program targeting top retail and wholesale lenders. Fidelity will continue to support and enhance the client-server version of Empower as well.

Ellie Mae, Dublin, Calif., has partnered with CCMC, Altamonte Springs, Fla., a provider of financial services industry platform interfaces, to deliver timesaving and error-reducing interface services to Ellie Mae's Encompass Mortgage Automation System clients.CCMC's Bridge technology eliminates duplicate data entry by providing automated interfaces for Encompass. The end result is a workflow that reduces errors for mortgage companies, banks and credit unions that choose to interface disparate systems. As a result of the partnership agreement, customers will now be provided with an interface with which to move information in and out of Encompass. Ellie Mae can be found on the Web at http://www.EllieMae.com.

Wolters Kluwer Corporate & Financial Services, Minneapolis, has acquired GulfPak Corp., a provider of automated lending and account origination technology to U.S. financial organizations.GulfPak, Jackson, Miss., provides its compliance-based technology to more than 700 financial organizations. Recently, GulfPak implemented a series of product enhancements to its automated systems including mortgage origination, imaging and e-signature functionality. GulfPak will become part of the Financial Services business unit of Wolters Kluwer, whose product brands include Bankers Systems, PCi and VMP Mortgage Solutions. Jay Tindall, president and chief executive officer of GulfPak, will join the Wolters Kluwer Financial Services management team and will continue to provide leadership for the Jackson operation where GulfPak has approximately 37 employees. Terms of the purchase agreement were not released. The acquisition is subject to GulfPak shareholder approval. Wolters Kluwer Financial Services can be found on the Web at http://www.wolterskluwerfs.com.

LynxBanc Mortgage Corp., Boca Raton, Fla., has added to its offerings the ability to arrange multicurrency mortgage facilities for international buyers purchasing homes in South Florida by working with the United Kingdom-based Lloyds TSB Bank."Florida has the highest share of real estate buyers from overseas of any state, 15[%] on average," said Stephen Parnell, chief executive officer of LynxBanc. "This new mortgage facility offers the overseas buyer the opportunity to switch between eligible international currencies easily and inexpensively up to four times a year." LynxBanc can be found on the Web at http://www.lynxbanc.com

New York State has the highest mortgage closing costs in the nation, followed by Texas and Hawaii, according to Bankrate Inc.'s 2006 National Closing Cost Survey.The survey found average closing costs of $3,887 in New York, $3,578 in Texas, and $3,407 in Hawaii, compared with $2,713 in Missouri, which had the lowest closing fees among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. In conjunction with the survey, Bankrate commissioned a national poll by Roper asking 1,005 homeowners about their closing costs. Of those surveyed, 13% said they paid more than their lender's estimate, 8% said they paid less, and 60% said their closing costs were about the same as the estimate. "No matter where you live, it pays to shop around," said Daniel P. Ray, editor in chief of Bankrate.com. "Our closing cost estimates, teamed with our mortgage rate table data, provide consumers the knowledge and confidence needed during the home purchasing process." Bankrate's Closing Cost Survey was conducted by obtaining eight to 10 good-faith estimates in each state from the websites of online lenders. To view the survey, go to http://www.bankrate.com/closing.

Bankrate Inc., New York, has announced an agreement to acquire three websites from East West Mortgage Inc. for $4.4 million in cash.The websites are Mortgage-calc.com, Mortgagecalc.com, and Mortgagemath.com. "We intend to leverage the consumer traffic generated by these websites into the Bankrate.com offering within the next week," said Thomas R. Evans, president and chief executive officer of Bankrate Inc. Bankrate can be found on the Web at http://www.bankrate.com.

Seattle-based HomeTeam, which created a syndicated television program of the same name to place first-time homeowners into homes, has now developed a platform that directly links the show with an education program and an online consumer portal.HomeTeam said it is collaborating with First American Corp., Fiserv, InCharge Institute of America Inc., and NeighborhoodScout.com, among others, to ensure that the necessary products and services are available to consumers through its portal. The goal is to help industry professionals drive branding, lead generation, and awareness into the marketplace at the regional and national levels, the company said. HomeTeam has also created HomeTeam University, which offers homeownership mentoring, home-buying fairs, education, and counseling. The portal offers point-to-point networking capabilities, neighborhood searches, real estate agent and loan officer searches, and access to extensive mortgage information. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.hometeam.com.

Lead generation was the marquee topic at the Internet Mortgage Marketing Summit July 26, held by Real Estate Connect at San Francisco's Palace Hotel.Back-to-back mortgage sessions took up search engine and portal marketing, pay-per-call, lead validation, going beyond online loan applications, how to work Internet leads, and best practices for Internet lead providers. As mortgage originators deal with a declining market, lead generation becomes more critical, and several mortgage company executives and loan officers took the opportunity to publicly upbraid their vendors for sending them poor leads. Several panelists reminded mortgage professionals that Internet borrowers value speedy service and that the shelf life of Internet leads can be minutes rather than hours, much less days.