Technology

Internet Brands Inc., a Los Angeles-based operator of media and electronic commerce websites, has launched Loan.com, a website that assists users in finding ethical lenders with the lowest rates.The company said Loan.com provides an outlet for both wary consumers and frustrated lenders by creating a "Trusted Marketplace," where lenders agree to a set of ethical business practices and borrowers are educated about what to expect during the loan process. All lenders listed on Loan.com confirm their support for the Borrower's Bill of Rights, a set of ethical business practices that describe how they interact with the consumer. In addition, lenders in the Ethical Lender Directory are ranked on a star system that will include feedback from consumers on the site, the company said. Internet Brands can be found on the Web at http://www.internetbrands.com.

KB Home, a Los Angeles-based homebuilder, has announced the launch of KBHomeowner.com, a website that offers tools such as seasonal checklists and neighborhood guides.The checklists are aimed at helping homeowners keep their homes in peak condition, and the neighborhood guides provide information on community resources and local hot spots, the company said. "Visitors can also read tips on fun and easy home ideas, from 10 simple tips for organizing closets to growing strategies for kids' rooms," KB Home said. The new site can be found online at http://www.kbhomeowner.com.

Informative Research, Garden Grove, Calif., has announced launch of a free fraud prevention tool, Credit Score Verifier, that offers to reduce mortgage lender risk and loan fallout.The company said the proprietary Web-based utility was developed to enable a lender to verify credit scores reported by any of the repositories before undertaking the time and expense of underwriting the file or ordering a backup credit report. The tool addresses the risk associated with the increasing popularity of nontraditional loan types that allow for no documentation and stated incomes, where fraud is always a major consideration, according to an Informative Research spokeswoman. The enhanced tool, formerly called Credit Score Validator, provides a way to assure a lender that a paper copy of a credit report has not been altered, Informative Research said. The company can be found online at http://www.informativeresearch.com.

Ellie Mae, Dublin, Calif., has launched a banker division in response to the introduction of Encompass Banker Edition.The new division will focus exclusively on Ellie Mae's banker and lender clients and partners. Ellie Mae's client base includes over 3,000 mortgage bankers, according to the company. Encompass Banker Edition has already been adopted by two dozen companies since its launch in late October 2006, Ellie Mae reported. Jeff Benjamin, the company's director of sales, has become vice president of the newly created division and will report to Joe Langner, Ellie Mae's chief operating officer. Mr. Benjamin will focus on business development efforts among wholesale lenders and bankers -- including the promotion of Encompass Banker Edition and Encompass Custom Edition -- as well as the company's full range of connectivity solutions for the wholesale banking community. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.elliemae.com.

Using document images in the mortgage underwriting process is the most critical component of going paperless, according to an annual survey by Atlanta-based Advectis Inc.Advectis said 92% of its survey participants cited the use of document images in underwriting as critical to moving toward a fully electronic mortgage. The survey also found that 70% of respondents said it is very important that new technology integrate with existing systems, and 64% said it is very important to have a Web-based solution. In addition, enabling collaboration with other mortgage market participants and functionality throughout the loan processing life cycle were both cited as very important by 56% of the survey respondents, Advectis reported. The company can be found online at http://www.advectis.com.

Radar Logic Inc., New York, has announced its launch as a technology-driven analytic and data business (whose first products relate to residential real estate) that has merged with Ventana Systems Inc., Harvard, Mass.Radar Logic said the two companies have developed proprietary mathematical tools and algorithms that extract statistical information from public source data relating to residential real estate transactions. This information will be used to maintain indices representing daily cash market-equivalent prices for various categories of real estate in different metropolitan statistical areas, Radar Logic said. "Radar Logic will provide a basis for financial and business tools that will be far more accurate and timely than previously available," said Michael Feder, chief executive officer of Radar Logic. "Our indices will contribute to the further evolution of an orderly and liquid marketplace for real-estate-based derivatives." The companies can be found online at http://www.radarlogic.com and http://www.ventanasystems.com.

Vuecentric Inc., the Austin, Texas-based developer of the MortgageDashboard loan origination system, is powering the back office for a new international mortgage lending effort to help American and Canadian buyers invest in Mexican real estate.MortgageDashboard is the first online lending platform to be adapted to an international real estate lending process, Vuecentric said. The company is working with GainClients Inc., a Web-based technology provider, and Carefree Mortgage, a Hermosillo, Sonora-based broker specializing in American loans for Mexican homes. GainClients is making the MortgageDashboard front end available for use on the websites of Mexico-based real estate agents, who use the software to send leads seamlessly through to Carefree Mortgage for processing and funding, Vuecentric said. The company can be found online at http://www.vuecentric.com.

McDonald Computer Corp., a Southfield, Mich.-based provider of automated loan servicing technology to the mortgage industry, has added a reverse-mortgage servicing component to its system.The company said the new reverse mortgage capabilities in its flagship product, Servicing/T.I.M.E., can manage all types of home equity conversion mortgages, including FHA-backed loans. "According to the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association, the number of reverse mortgages made in the U.S. in 2006 grew 77%," noted Jim McDonald, founder and president of McDonald Computer Corp.

Hanover Capital Partners, Edison, N.J., has embraced imaging practices for providing due diligence and quality control services to its investor customers with the selection of BlitzDocs, the flagship product of Alpharetta, Ga.-based Advectis.Advectis said Hanover has also become a BlitzDocs Certified QC Provider and BlitzDocs Certified Due Diligence Provider. As a certified provider on the BlitzDocs collaborative document network, Hanover is prepared to receive imaged loan folders from lenders using BlitzDocs to perform QC and due-diligence review, Advectis said. Lenders and investors can deliver imaged loan folders electronically to Hanover by this method. Hanover can be found on the Web at http://www.hanovercapital.com, and Advectis can be found at http://www.advectis.com.

ComplianceEase, San Francisco, has promoted its executive vice president, David Girling, to the position of president and chief executive officer.The compliance and risk management automation company's co-founder and former CEO, John Vong, will remain as chairman of the board, while another co-founder, Anita Kwan, will become chief operating officer and retain responsibility for finance, business operations, and administration. In his new position, Mr. Girling will be charged with expanding the company's already extensive roster of partnerships with loan origination systems and loan document providers as well as with Wall Street firms and other mortgage market participants. He brings over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, including leadership positions with Shearson Lehman Mortgage, GE Capital Mortgage Corp., and PricewaterhouseCoopers. ComplianceEase can be found on the Web at http://www.complianceease.com.