Technology

Ellie Mae has timed the 2.8 release of its Encompass loan origination system to incorporate the mandated 2006 version of Fannie Mae's 1003 loan application form.Unveiled at the Western Regional Mortgage Brokers Conference in Las Vegas, the newest version of Encompass features enhancements for new business development, loan processing, electronic document management, and administration. It also includes new prequalification and loan comparison tools, an employment verification service, and a simplified appraisal ordering function. Users can conduct a comprehensive prequal with a single form featuring "easy-to-interpret visual cues" showing whether the borrower is qualified or pending qualification, Ellie Mae said. The 2.8 release is scheduled to be available by the end of November. Ellie Mae received a 2005 Mortgage Technology commendation from Mortgage Technology magazine, a MortgageWire affiliate. The company can be found online at http://www.elliemae.com.

NetBank Inc., an Atlanta-based online bank, has reported a mortgage-related net loss of $1.4 million ($0.03 per share) for the third quarter, compared with net income of $4.0 million ($0.09 per share) a year earlier.NetBank said the results include a pretax provision of $3.5 million related to a group of conforming mortgages with an outstanding balance of $13 million. "The company believes certain misrepresentations may have been made by one or more of the parties involved during the loan application process," NetBank said. Mortgage production totaled $3.8 billion in the third quarter, a rise of 9.0% from that of the second quarter, the company reported. The performance of servicing assets went from a loss of $2.3 million in the second quarter to pretax income of $130,000 in the third quarter "as higher rates and improving valuations for mortgage servicing rights led to prior impairment expense recovery," NetBank said. The company can be found online at http://www.netbank.com.

Preferred Financial Group Inc., a nationwide direct lender with a wholesale channel based in Burlingame, Calif., and Shearson Home Loans, a retail mortgage brokerage based in Las Vegas, have announced a partnership aimed at expanding their loan volume and offering a broader range of services.Shearson said finding a partner that could manage the banking side of the business was a key factor in its decision, while PFG said it was looking for a strong player in the residential mortgage market. "PFG Inc. is committed to technology, with a solid infrastructure that is capable of handling a loan volume of increasing capacity," said Michael Barron, Shearson's chairman and chief executive officer. "As Shearson continues to expand and open new branches, the business partnership with PFG Inc. enables us to grow faster and stronger, while exceeding the expectations of our clients." PFG offers Web-based technology, in-house underwriting, document preparation, funding, and closing processes. Its wholesale channel, WLO, can be found online at http://www.wloconnect.com, and Shearson can be found at http://www.shearsonhomeloans.com.

Mortgage technology veterans Bill Rice and Jeff Bell have launched Kaleidico LLC, Flat Rock, Mich., to help speed the adoption of new technology by offering lenders "appliances" that they say will improve existing systems and processes.The first set of appliances includes icoSales, which automates lead generation and routing and gathers and distributes leads from major Internet providers; icoAsset, which streamlines due diligence, wholesale/correspondent lending, and secondary marketing optimization; and icoDeposit, which makes online deposit gathering and reporting an option for financial institutions of all sizes. (Kaleidico said "ico" is from Latin, meaning "to strike a deal.") "Rather than building costly and time-consuming end-to-end systems, we are offering a series of technology appliances that can be quickly integrated into existing infrastructures for immediate benefits," said Mr. Rice, who held senior credit, risk, and secondary strategic marketing posts at DeepGreen Financial and, more recently, Quicken Loans. Mr. Bell was the chief information officer who led the development of DeepGreen's Web-based home equity lending platform, according to Kaleidico.

ComplianceEase, a San Francisco-based provider of regulatory compliance and risk management systems, has signed a strategic partnership agreement with GMAC Residential Funding, Minneapolis.The partnership will establish an automated compliance application available in the marketplace by combining ComplianceEase's ComplianceAnalyzer with GMAC Residential's Assetwise Compliance Engine. GMAC Residential's lender partners will now be able to run audits on both applications simultaneously, addressing all federal, state, and municipal laws and regulations, as well as GMAC Residential's specific guidelines, the companies said. As part of the new alliance, GMAC Residential will integrate its technology platform with ComplianceAnalyzer, ComplianceEase's proprietary intelligent decisioning system. Both companies will jointly market the solution to GMAC Residential's approved sellers, as well as prospective customers. The companies can be found online at http://www.complianceease.com and http://www.gmacrfc.com.

Canadian technology vendor Filogix Inc. and Fidelity Information Services, a division of Fidelity National Financial Inc. based in Jacksonville, Fla., have partnered to deliver an integrated end-to-end mortgage processing system in an application service provider environment.Under this alliance, Filogix provides mortgage underwriters with the technology to source mortgage products and services, as well as the underwriting and processing technology necessary to complete the process. FIS provides the end-to-end servicing system, facilitating management of the entire mortgage process. In related news, Paradigm Quest, a Canadian financial institution, has signed on to implement the product. Filogix can be found on the Web at http://www.filogix.com, and FIS can be found at http://www.fnf.com, http://www.fntg.com, and http://www.fidelityinfoservices.com.

Fiserv Inc., Brookfield, Wis., has named Jeffery W. Yabuki president, chief executive officer, and a member of the board of directors effective on or before Dec. 1.Mr. Yabuki will succeed Leslie M. Muma, who is retiring as president and CEO but will continue in a consulting capacity to the company until June 30, 2006, and as a director until the 2006 Fiserv annual meeting. Mr. Yabuki joins Fiserv from H&R Block Inc., where he spent six years and served as executive vice president and chief operating officer since 2002. In that role he had oversight of the domestic and international tax businesses, e-commerce activities, and the financial services business units operating under the H&R Block brand, as well as marketing, information technology, compliance, and corporate development. He also served on H&R Block's Planning & Policy Committee. Fiserv can be found on the Web at http://www.fiserv.com.

Lancaster Mortgage Bankers, a wholesale lender based in Warren, N.J., is deploying Mozart AUS, an automated underwriting application by Overture Technologies, Bethesda, Md."We're leveraging Overture's Mozart AUS to produce our own proprietary underwriting engine for use within our website," explained Elliot Salzman, Lancaster's president and chief executive officer. "We expect to be able to increase volume by 20%-30% while keeping the same number of staff." Mozart AUS offers Lancaster the ability to automatically price, select, and underwrite all conforming and nonconforming loans, including alternative-A, subprime, and interest-only products. The application is expected to be fully operational by early 2006. Overture can be found on the Web at http://www.overturetechnologies.com.

SouthBanc Mortgage has selected the Platinum Data cascading automated valuation platform as a cost-saving tool for delivering property valuation reports.Herndon, Va.-based SouthBanc Mortgage is a subsidiary of SouthBank, a federal savings bank headquartered in Huntsville, Ala. SouthBanc Mortgage comprises 80 loan officers and originates various residential loan products throughout the United States. Platinum Data Solutions offers a configurable AVM platform that enables SouthBanc users to quickly reference previously ordered AVMs for any properties within their account. Platinum Data can be found online at http://www.platdata.com.

San Jose, Calif.-based Calyx Software and Ellie Mae, Dublin, Calif., have resolved their dispute in Calyx's lawsuit against Ellie Mae.In a joint statement, both companies described the settlement as "mutually beneficial in allowing both companies to focus on serving their respective customers." As part of the confidential settlement, Ellie Mae agreed to pay Calyx an undisclosed sum. The companies added that "Calyx and Ellie Mae are distinct companies, each with their own products and services to offer to the mortgage industry. Any confusion in the marketplace regarding this distinction is not desirable. Certain statements attributed to Ellie Mae in the past implying affiliation between Ellie Mae and Calyx have been inaccurate." The companies can be found online at http://www.calyxsoftware.com and http://www.elliemae.com.