Technology

Fidelity National Information Services Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., has announced the acquisition of Applied Financial Technology, a provider of risk analytics, analysis, and data for the mortgage industry.The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Fidelity said AFT's qualitative analytics can be fully integrated into various third-party systems and are used by brokers, banks, and investors to price, fund, trade, and hedge mortgages and mortgage-backed securities. "The importance of the analytic component that AFT will provide to FIS customers cannot be overemphasized," said Greg Whitworth, president of FIS Loan Portfolio Solutions. "In today's environment, lenders, loan servicers, and investors alike must incorporate meaningful analytics in the pricing and ongoing evaluation of loan performance." The company can be found online at http://www.fidelityinfoservices.com.

Byte Software has launched a new software development kit designed to make it easier for companies to integrate to their loan origination software.The SDK will allow Byte clients and third parties to develop customized applications between BytePro and BytePro Enterprise, the company reported at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers annual conference in Seattle. Specifically, software engineers will be able to import or export data in and out of BytePro using industry standards, including Fannie Mae and MISMO file formats. Custom add-ins can also be inserted directly within BytePro menus to allow users to complete core tasks without having to leave the application. Kirkland, Wash.-based Byte Software can be found on the Web at http://www.bytesoftware.com.

Jamison Law Group, Los Angeles, has announced the launch of Credit CRM, an out-of-the-box software and training system designed to empower mortgage originators to offer credit repair services to Americans with poor credit.Credit CRM includes full credit training as well as a credit and sales software system, unlimited telephone support, and a full Internet-based marketing system. Credit CRM is offered to businesses and individual entrepreneurs who are looking to start a credit repair business, and is often used as a supplemental business opportunity for mortgage professionals. The system provides Web-based sales management modules, over 20 hours of credit repair training, and a full marketing program. The announcement came at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers annual conference in Seattle. Jamison Law Group can be found on the Web at http://www.jamisonlawgroup.com.

In a move to enable affiliated credit reporting agencies to help borrowers raise their credit scores, Credit Systems Design has announced that it will make the credit analysis system Deal Maker Score available to its broad base of credit reporting company clients.The announcement came at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers annual conference in Seattle. CSD's affiliated credit reporting agencies service the mortgage industry's lenders and brokers on CSD's UltraAMPS mortgage processing system. By providing access to Deal Maker Score, CSD said it is making it easy for mortgage originators to show borrowers how they can raise their credit scores to a target score. CSD, which provides the technology that enables credit reporting companies to deliver merged credit reports to their clients, can be found online at http://www.creditsystemsdesign.com.

Proposed legislation to mandate that mortgage professionals sign off on borrower suitability as a solution to curbing predatory practices "won't work in the real world," the new president of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers, George Hanzimanolis, has told the NAMB annual conference in Seattle.Mr. Hanzimanolis commended politicians for trying to come up with a solution for the problem, but says requiring brokers to sign off on borrower suitability is just not the answer. "When the broker takes an application, they have a limited amount of information on the borrower," Mr. Hanzimanolis said. "There are too many unknowns for anyone to determine long-term suitability. How am I supposed to predict if the borrower will maintain employment, won't get a divorce, won't suffer a death in the family, won't become unexpectedly sick? This is sexy on the Hill, but it won't work in the real world." The NAMB can be found online at http://www.namb.org.

Reverse mortgage specialist Lender Lead Solutions, Melville, N.Y., has announced the launch of its Reverse Mentoring Program, offering on-site training and additional advisory services to help mortgage brokers develop reverse mortgage operations.According to the announcement at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers' annual convention in Seattle, the curriculum will include "content to address the unique aspects of the senior marketplace and the reverse mortgage product, including in-depth review of all legal, compliance, and quality control procedures." The program will also include sales training focused on the special requirements of selling to seniors and the need for outside counseling, plus comprehensive instruction on loan flow, processing, settlement, underwriting, appraising, closing and funding, post-closing, and servicing functions using the company's STORM wholesale technology platform. Lender Lead Solutions can be found online at http://www.lenderleadsolutions.com.

Dublin, Calif.-based Ellie Mae has released Encompass 3.0, an upgrade of its Encompass Mortgage Management Solution that enables two-way communication with borrowers and vendors, handles more loan programs, and integrates with more third-party technology.In addition, Ellie Mae said the product is now fully integrated with Encompass WebCenter, a tool that provides users with a scalable and search-engine-friendly website and a secure online business center that originators can use to generate leads and to communicate and collaborate with borrowers and partners. Encompass 3.0 supports more third-party technology platforms, like the newest versions of several systems by Microsoft, ACT!, and Adobe, Ellie Mae said. Furthermore, the upgrade can handle a larger array of loan programs, including piggyback loans and more payment-option adjustable-rate mortgage products. Compliance auditing for high-cost and predatory loans is now completely automated within Encompass 3.0, Ellie Mae said. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.elliemae.com.

NYLX Inc., a mortgage technology provider based in Mt. Arlington, N.J., has released BrokerToolz, an all-in-one product-eligibility and pricing engine that allows mortgage brokers to price and make loan decisions instantly with the click of a mouse, according to the company.The Web-based BrokerToolz allows brokers to select and price loans on-demand around the clock, eliminating rate sheets. BrokerToolz qualifies loan scenarios against multilender guidelines and price adjusters to display fully adjusted rates, and it prices and ranks the results to maximize transaction profits, NYLX said. The product "offers lead management, eligibility, loan pricing and best execution via the Internet," NYLX president John Alexander said. "... The surprising part is, this multifeature functionality is available at a very affordable price." NYLX can be found online at http://www.nylx.com.

Homebuyers considering different mortgage products can now use an online mortgage calculator to compare the monthly payments and equity buildup of different loan products, thanks to the Federal Reserve Board."We have created a tool that will allow consumers to look ahead to see how much equity they will build and what their mortgage payments will be three, five, seven, or 10 years down the road with different mortgage products," Fed Governor Randall Kroszner said. The calculator can be used on 30-year and 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, interest-only fixed-rate mortgages, adjustable-rate mortgages, interest-only ARMs, and payment-option ARMs. "These comparisons should encourage more consumers to shop around and compare mortgage offers," the Fed governor said. The Mortgage Comparison Calculator is on the Fed's website at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/mortcalc/

MortgageHub, a Norcross, Ga.-based provider of technology for the mortgage industry, has released TCL Lite, a version of its TCL (The Construction Lender) construction lending software that is tailored for smaller lenders.TCL Lite uses the same basic functions as the original system, but streamlines it to provide only those functions that smaller lenders require, and allows users to upgrade to the full TCL system with minimal effort, MortgageHub said. "TCL Lite is extremely easy to implement and use but still provides all the controls required for budgeting, cash management, and management information," said Dave Demster, president of MortgageHub's Mortgage Products Division. "Smaller lenders get a cost-effective, yet powerful solution that fits their needs today, while also providing the expandability to accommodate their growth in the future." The company can be found online at http://www.mortgagehub.com.