Technology

Wells Fargo has launched an improved website for brokers to interface with Wells, giving them the freedom to tap into various resources.For example, the system's online mutual fund center gives brokers the power to tailor investment decisions to their customers' needs with search tools that allow for comparison shopping of over 7,000 funds. In addition, Wells reported that the site can be customized so brokers can view their entire pipeline. Each loan on the site also has a designated Wells Fargo financial adviser that can update the loan information around the clock.

Customers of Prime Alliance, Tukwila, Wash., originated over $22.5 billion in loan volume in 2004, or about the size of the 11th largest U.S. retail mortgage lender.According to Prime Alliance, the company now has almost 40% of the total credit union market, nearly double last year's market share. "Our vision is to Web-enable a fragmented mortgage industry and process through strategic partnerships with key market aggregators," said Steve Mase, Dexma president. "The success of Prime Alliance and Prime Alliance Services Co. is indicative of what can be accomplished when we put our heads together with a forward-thinking business partner who's ready to seize a significant market opportunity." Prime Alliance, a partnership between Dexma and Boeing Employees' Credit Union, now comprises over 75 credit union and CUSO (credit union service organization) customers representing more than 400 credit unions. Prime Alliance can be found on the Web at http://www.primealliancesolutions.com, and Dexma can be found at http://www.dexma.com.

LoanPerformance, San Francisco, and Intelligent Results, Bellevue, Wash., have announced the introduction of ScoreText, a predictive modeling system the companies say has wide application for mortgage servicers.ScoreText integrates structured data with unstructured text data, enabling servicers to better understand and predict customer behavior in servicing and collection efforts, they said. "Today's best predictive models only incorporate about 20% of the available data," said Richard Harmon, senior vice president for scoring and analytics at LoanPerformance. "By exploiting the available unstructured data that makes up the other 80%, mortgage servicers can not only improve their ability to predict customer behavior, but can have a much better understanding of the key factors differentiating behavior." The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.loanperformance.com and http://www.intelligentresults.com.

Milwaukee-based eMagic.com has formed a strategic alliance with WellFound Decade, Jacksonville, Fla., to allow users to integrate the eMagic portal and their back-end systems.WellFound created a custom interface to eMagic to make it possible for users to integrate their back-end loan origination system with eMagic's portal of third-party services, eMagic said. The integration was conceived to create a more seamless end-to-end approach where information flows between the two systems without the need for rekeying, eMagic said. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.wellfounddecade.com and http://www.emagic.com.

First Lenders Data Inc., an Austin, Texas-based technology, data, and bundled services provider, has formed an alliance with Western Reliance Corp., Portland, Ore., to provide bundled services to financial institutions.FLDI said it was chosen by Western Reliance to provide bundled services and is now providing its customers with credit reports, automated valuation models, insured AVMs, appraisals, flood certifications, property reports, legal and vesting reports, lien reports, and income verification through MorClose, a licensed version of FLDI's vendor management platform called FirstClose. Western Reliance is a provider of collateral protection insurance and tracking systems and ancillary insurance products to lenders. The companies can be found on the Web at http://www.fldi.com and http://www.westernreliance.com.

TA Associates, a Boston-based private equity and buyout firm, has announced the investment of $50 million in C&S Marketing, a provider of mortgage lending information and technology based in Sacramento, Calif.The investment represents a minority interest in C&S Marketing. "We have established a valuable and unique channel as a 'vendor-neutral' AVM provider, and we aim to become the dominant information portal for the mortgage lending community," said Steve Schroeder, C&S Marketing's chief executive officer. "We believe partnering with TA will help us achieve this goal and maintain our lead in providing customized best-of-breed solutions to our clients." The companies can be found online at http://www.ta.com and http://www.csmarketing.net.

The Real Estate Solutions division of Jacksonville, Fla.-based Fidelity National Financial Inc. has updated its TransactionPoint Suite, a Web-based real estate transaction management platform and ordering system.Transaction Point version 8.7, which includes an updated user interface, enables brokers to enter property data, add clients, create transactions, update activities, order services, upload documents, and share information throughout the life cycle of the real estate process, the company said. The system also helps brokers manage risk by standardizing processes and centralizing documentation. The FNF family of companies can be found on the Web at http://www.fnf.com and http://www.fidelityinfoservices.com.

PMAC, West Covina, Calif., has launched a website that provides information and services aimed at consumers, mortgage brokers, and other groups affiliated with the mortgage banking industry.The company said it has restructured its operations to focus on three key lending areas: wholesale, outsourced, and retail. "PMAC's Wholesale Lending Group is an exciting new venture for us in that we can now offer competitive loan programs," said Jon Magill, president and chief executive officer of PMAC. "Many of these programs are unique to PMAC and offered directly to mortgage brokers and third-party originators." The new website can be found online at http://www.pmac.com.

Roger Gudobba, senior principal for strategic business development at VMP Mortgage Solutions Inc., has been named chairperson of the eMortgage Alliance, replacing Dave Williamson of the Performance Group."Roger is a strong evangelist," said Ty Jenkins, founder and chief executive officer of DocuTech Corp. and a member of the eMortgage Alliance. "He's got the vision. Everything with e-forms, electronic delivery has been his strong point. He's carried that baton for years, and he'll be great for the eMortgage Alliance." Each chairperson holds the title for a single one-year term. The eMortgage Alliance is a consortium of companies that have assembled to promote standards-based electronic mortgage technology, systems, and best practices to encourage the industry to move toward the eventual acceptance of a complete electronic mortgage. The organization can be found on the Web at http://www.emortgagealliance.us.

First Line Data Inc., Boulder, Colo., has announced the launch of its exclusive Alert! Summary and Firstline Score on the company's Broker Verification Review reports.The enhancements provide wholesale mortgage lenders the decision-support information needed to more quickly determine the approval of a third-party originator, the company said. Alert! messages are for material discrepancies between submitted information and records found or any derogatory information found within a BVR report. An Alert! summary is also provided on the front page, along with the Firstline Score&trade, which uses a risk-based scoring model that calculates the combined weighted average of all Alerts found in the report. "A First Line Data BVR report in a file will quickly demonstrate to a third party the procedures employed in determining the initial approval of a business partner," said Nancy Cowley, senior account executive at First Line. "Our reports provide clear evidence of a sound due-diligence process." First Line can be found online at http://www.firstlinedata.com.