In today's mortgage industry, capturing the attention of consumers is partly about offering multiple channels in which they can conduct business. Bank of America (B of A) is working at adding yet another channel for consumers to conduct mortgage business, the mobile phone. Last year, B of A "mobile-optimized" their auto loan applications, allowing their customers to complete 85% to 90% of the process on their phone, according to an article in National Mortgage News. Now they are turning their sights on mortgage applications. Although much more tricky, their focus is to simplify the process to make it more mobile friendly. They are adding features like the ability to upload and e-sign documents, all while giving the consumer the ability to connect to a mortgage loan officer.

The mobile experience is expected to be much more conversational, compared with the online experience which is just filling out a form. B of A plans to pre-populate fields with information that is already known about the customer, cutting down on the number of questions required to be answered. Longtime customers could have much of their information pre-filled, allowing them to complete the process much more quickly.

We’ve often preached about the importance of time-saving in the mortgage industry. As a growing number of borrowers become more expectant of an immediate response, finding ways to streamline current daily processes to spend more time getting in touch with them is vital. One such way you can earn back some of that precious time is by removing the need to constantly re-enter data when pricing, but how? Let Mortech help.

The above graphic is an example of a Marksman user that utilizes our integration Encompass’ LOS platform to save themselves from having to rekey data for a pricing scenario. By integrating our pricing engine with Encompass, a lender can input the data they need once – without having to repeat it later – and automatically transfer that scenario between Marksman and Encompass, eliminating the need to manually download and upload the borrower scenario.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has released proposed changes to the updated Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) rule. The rule requires lenders to report on data from mortgage applications received, or loans originated or purchased. The rule was updated in 2015 to improve the quality of the data reported, with the effective date for the changes January 2018. The proposal provides much needed clarification, technical changes, as well as minor changes to the rule.

As an investor, your ultimate goal is to have as many qualified lenders as possible quoting your products, while reaching more potential borrowers. Fortunately, Mortech aligns with this way of thinking, and works to provide the most accurate and up-to-date investor rate data to our customers, so that they can provide those products to their borrowers. But what makes being a Mortech investor so beneficial is the amount of lenders that can use your rate data to find the best product for their borrowers.

Lenders who use Marksman for pricing use, on average, rate data from nine different investors when finding best execution pricing. This provides them with flexibility to offer the best possible product and rate to their borrowers. As a Marksman investor, you would have a dedicated team working for you to ensure that your rate data and approved lenders remain up to date and consistent, by being provided an open line of communication. This includes supporting any major rate sheet changes or adjustments that may come up.

This communication doesn’t just stop with Mortech, though. Have a specific product or special offer you want highlighted? Mortech helps market your product offerings to our lenders so that it can be noticed and offered immediately.

Mortgage rate increases, along with the additional rate increases expected later this year, are impacting expectations for purchase mortgage demand. According to Fannie Mae’s first quarter 2017 Mortgage Lender Sentiment Survey®, lenders are optimistic about the direction of the economy and home prices, but are showing concern over profit margins compared with previous years.

As a mortgage lender, keeping your online rate tables updated is vital for presenting only the most accurate information to borrowers. Delaying rate updates can cause potential customers to be misinformed, and result in a less than favorable first impression for your brand. It’s this fear of getting off on the wrong foot that has many lenders constantly posting and updating their rates, trying their best to maintain accuracy and trust with their borrowers.

The toughest part about bringing information together from several different sources is compiling it all into a single, cohesive body that ties together. Imagine you have 100 different sources, all speaking in different languages and accents, with different mannerisms and phrases. When you’re putting this all together, you need to make it one language and style, so as not to confuse those reading it. You’d probably have one standardized language and writing style that you’d transpose everything to, and using that, you could put your source material together. This is exactly what Mortech APIs do with leads every day.

In an article written by Rick Triola and posted on MReport, Endorsing the eMortgage takes a look at why companies have not embraced the eMortgage process. Many have been waiting for the industry to update their out-of-date processes, but there seems to be something holding them back. This article gives a response as to why many of the concerns mentioned by those in the industry are unfounded and only seem to be blocking them from moving into the future of mortgage lending.

Often times, lenders focus on how they’ll sell a prospect on a loan when they have a conversation with them. It’s the simple idea of having a sales pitch ready when a potential borrower walks through the door. But what many lenders might not realize is the number of borrowers they could be losing before they’ve even had a chance to talk with them at all. When submitting a mortgage application, the experience a borrower goes through is the first thing that determines if they’re going to stick through the entire online application process, and having a slow, time-consuming, 1003 applications can cause a lot of borrowers to stop the mortgage process when they’ve only just started.