Blog - The Source

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Using Data To Optimize CWCOT Outcomes

September 15, 2023

In 2016, nearly one in five newly originated loans were Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans. Although these loans led to an increase in home sales, they also comprised more than 34 percent of loans that were delinquent over 30 days, or nearly 8 million in outstanding FHA loans.

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Risk Management Tools for Construction Lending

September 15, 2023

The resource-intensive business of construction lending has primarily been the purview of the big banks, but in recent years, smaller mortgage lenders have increasingly broken into the industry. Historically, mortgage banks have lacked the capital to become competitive in the construction lending space; this all changed with the advent of warehouse capacity, a specialized line of credit provided to mortgage bankers by warehouse lenders.

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Why Lenders Should Switch to Hybrid HELOC Solutions

September 7, 2023

For a long time, home equity line of credit (HELOC) loans were the “go-to” short-term loan for homeowners, reaching a record high of $430 billion in 2006. With looser HELOC lending practices blamed for contributing to the 2008 housing crash, consumer confidence declined alongside the housing market.

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Understanding the FHA’s Claims Without Conveyance of Title

September 7, 2023

The same housing market that experienced a 60 percent increase in real estate transactions in the 2000s sent the U.S. into an economic freefall in 2008. Since then, the real estate industry and the federal government have worked hard to bring new life into the housing market. One answer was a program called Claims Without Conveyance of Title (CWCOT).

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The Pitfalls of Oversimplifying Third-Party Risk Management

September 7, 2023

It used to be that vendor management meant little more than a firm handshake and a signed contract. In today’s world, however, treating third-party risk management (TPRM) as a mere box to be checked is a dangerous oversimplification that puts businesses at reputational, financial and legal risk. Whether you are a lender, broker, bank or securities dealer, hidden within your operations are hundreds or even thousands of contractors and subcontractors, each with access to sensitive information.

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The Best Strategies for Breathing Life into Zombie Properties

September 7, 2023

It’s been over 10 years since the housing crisis, and although the pace of foreclosure filings in the United States is substantially lower, the process can still take many years. At the height of the crisis, more than 300,000 vacant or distressed one- to four-bedroom homes, or “zombie properties,” sat languishing across the country. Today, more than 9,000 of these zombie homes are still stuck in foreclosure with mortgage liens.

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Short Sale or Foreclosure – Mobile Auction Apps Increase Sales

September 7, 2023

The past decade of app development has transformed how we shop, eat and travel, with companies like Amazon, Uber, and Instacart creating seamless services to meet our basic needs. In the coming decade, we will likely see a similar change in housing, with apps transforming how we rent, buy and sell real estate.

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Servicer Best Practices for Preparing Natural Disasters

September 7, 2023

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), natural disasters such as mudslides, wildfires, hurricanes and floods cost the United States a whopping $91 billion in 2018. Unfortunately, these catastrophic natural disasters aren’t likely to decrease.

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Mortgage Fraud Is on the Rise – Here is What You Need to Know

September 7, 2023

Mortgage fraud is not a new problem, but there are strong indications it is on the rise. Incidents of mortgage fraud have steadily increased since 2010, and an estimated one in every 109 mortgage applications had fraud indications during the second quarter of 2018.

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How to Use Data to Better Support Field Services in a Dwindling Foreclosure Environment

September 7, 2023

As an industry, a steady decline in mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures means adapting to smaller volumes. With this constriction, servicers have a heightened focus on streamlining processes and assessing asset risk and cost. This often comes down to one word: data.
Whether it’s breaking down silos, understanding milestones, or setting the infrastructure for success, the role of data in achieving property excellence is ever expanding.

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How to Choose the Right Vendor Collaboration Partner

September 7, 2023

Spreading your company too thin across too many services isn’t sustainable. But most organizations can’t be every solution for every customer. So, what works? Teaming up with companies that provide complementary products in order to deliver a holistic solution that supports the customer through every step of the buying process. That’s why PayPal’s chief strategy, growth and data officer calls partnership “the business trend to watch”.

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How Lenders Can Hone Their Competitive Edge in a Business of Uncertainty

September 7, 2023

When it comes to construction projects, the old adage rings true: Time is money. From start to finish, every stage of a build is susceptible to myriad delays, missed opportunities, poorly managed risk and widespread inefficiencies. These all impede a project’s cost-effectiveness and threaten to sour the relationship between lender and building partners, i.e., an originator’s most indispensable referral source.