Technology

Cogent Road, San Diego, has launched a new tool designed to facilitate electronic communication between lenders and borrowers. Cogent said its new application, Roohmz Mortgage Enterprise, is an Internet-based workflow management system that manages the progression of loan applications from origination to closing, enforces compliance and provides a communication platform for all parties involved in the lending process. Through RME each loan file is digitized and rules are applied to its path to closing in order to guarantee that each compliance prerequisite is met before the program moves the loan to the next status. Once the status is attained, RME delivers the loan file to the next employee in the workflow, the company said.

Google this week is rolling out a new search function allowing consumers to shop and compare mortgage offerings from roughly 15 participating lenders. Google says the service — called AdWords Comparison Ads — will be fully deployed over the next few days. The rates will be visible in specific states where there is matching mortgage coverage from participating lenders. One Google partner in the service, Mortech, will enable participating lenders to list instant mortgage rate quotes through the service. PriceMyLoan is also a participating partner that will offer up mortgage pricing through Google. With Google's new offering, potential borrowers can view live rate quotes from mortgage professionals in a consistent manner. The feature, which does not require Google visitors to enter any private information, was designed to make the lending process more transparent, allowing applicants to access rate quotes instantly online. Clicking on the link takes the borrower to a page where they can view a variety of related mortgage offerings from lenders in that geographic area.

The new type of asset-backed security DelphX Capital Markets has created is currently on track to launch later this year with the assistance of its new partner, the Mortgage Industry Advisory Corp. "We're on target to roll out the first part of the second quarter of this year," DelphX chief executive officer Larry Fondren told National Mortgage News. MIAC is integrating its analytics with the market platform through which DelphX's recently renamed Syndicated Investor Guaranteed and Managed Asset securities are traded. The technology is designed to allow subscribers to access online asset-level information regarding a SIGMA portfolio and monitor its monthly performance thereafter. It also was designed to collectively assess the current value of each of these types of portfolios and related SIGMA securities as it anonymously trades all SIGMA issues. SIGMAs are based on American depository receipts, but they are officially considered ABS because, in contrast to the equity shares issued by foreign companies that ADRs issue the rights to, the ownership rights to the loan portfolios in SIGMAs officially are "terminal in nature" and don't persist the way rights to the stock in a company could. They are considered syndicated because they not sliced or diced but rather are participations or shares in the whole portfolio and they are guaranteed and managed by an investor "who holds skin in the game throughout," Mr. Fondren said.

Lenders Asset Management Corp. has launched LAMCO Vendor Management Process, which evaluates, scores and ranks LAMCO-endorsed vendors.LAMCO is an REO management company. LAMCO qualifies new vendors and manages ongoing service provider relationships using the elements of TQRDCEB, a framework developed by Hewlett Packard Co. Vendors are evaluated on technology, quality, responsiveness, delivery, cost, environment and business impact using a scorecard system based on a weighted strength ranking. Service providers are selected as a LAMCO vendor based on their performance within the TQRDCEB system and are routinely evaluated on the same scale to measure performance, identify areas of improvement and promote an environment where the status quo is challenged.

The Independent Community Bankers of America has expanded its preferred service provider program with Wolters Kluwer Financial Services to include the company's RESPA and Regulation GG Tool Kits, as well as the company's suite of Regulation CC products. Wolters Kluwer Financial Services introduced all three solutions to financial institutions in 2009 to help them address regulatory changes. Under the terms of the expanded ICBA preferred service provider relationship, Wolters Kluwer Financial Services will provide ICBA community bank members with access to the company's RESPA tool kit, Regulation CC solutions and Regulation GG tool kit.

Columbia, S.C.-based origination vendor Avista Solutions said it has updated its Avista Agile suite of products such that it is compliant with the changes to the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act that go into effect on Jan. 1, 2010. The updates are available for retail, wholesale or correspondent lending channels. At the heart of the RESPA change is the consumer concern that the initial transaction outlined in the Good Faith Estimate can change by the time the loan is closed, with unexpected fees showing up on the HUD-1 Settlement Statement. The new rules require that the documents be consistent, and if there are changes, they be supported by specific documented changes in the circumstances of the loan. Avista Solutions provides side-by-side comparison screens for users to check for variances between the GFE and HUD-1. All changes of circumstance can be tracked and are available for review.

As mortgage brokers feel the pinch, Mortgage Options of America Inc., a full service mortgage broker, has managed to save more than $20,000 in operating costs while reducing its loan fees more than 15% by automating. Specializing in first and second mortgages, debt consolidation and refinancing, MOA is licensed in Florida, Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Because the majority of its employees work on the road, the company needed total transparency, which it was not receiving from its previous system. This spurred the company's decision to switch to Xetus' XetusOne Loan Origination System. Prior to utilizing XetusOne, MOA had costly server needs, a T1 fiber optic line, and had to devote a lot of time backing up files and updating software. MOA credits a lot of its success to its strategic plan to automate.

More smaller banks and credit unions are adopting online, integrated point-of-sale technology to grow in the current down market. For example, Louisiana Federal Credit Union of LaPlace, La., decided that offering an online mortgage application would not only enable the organization's two-person mortgage team to increase their application volume, but would also help LFCU become a bigger player in the local mortgage market. As a result from 2004 to 2009, LFCU has used Mortgagebot's PowerSite technology to triple its annual mortgage volume without having to add staff. Similarly, Illini Bank, a $248-million-asset commercial bank with 12 locations near Springfield, Ill., had actually exited the mortgage business until realizing that a lack of mortgage products was costing them business to competitors. The bank implemented PowerSite Consumer as its direct-to-consumer mortgage website - enabling self-serve borrowers to quickly apply for mortgages online. Illini Bank has benefited significantly from its online solution, citing an average annual increase in application volume of 71% over the last three years.

Zillow Mortgage Marketplace is launching its first distribution deal with online real estate brokerage Redfin. Visitors to Redfin's website can now fill out a mini loan request form on the "Financing Your Home" page of the site. This brings potential borrowers to Zillow Mortgage Marketplace, where they can complete the Zillow Loan Request Form and instantly get custom quotes - all anonymously - from Zillow's network of thousands of lenders. Once borrowers submit a loan request, they receive, on average, 22 custom quotes from lenders nationwide. After comparing quotes, borrowers decide which lenders to contact, responding lenders don't call the borrower.

Dorado Corp., San Mateo, Calif., said that Dave Parker has been promoted to vice president, business development. In his new role, Mr. Parker will oversee all aspects of Dorado's business development efforts including technology and value-added reseller partnerships. He previously served as director of business development. In prior roles, he has served as director, sales platform development at Wells Fargo and chief executive officer at Praxis Technology Group. Before Wells Fargo, Mr. Parker served as chief operating officer at MortgageHub.