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1 2 2 0 W A N T A G H A V E N U E
W A N T A G H , N E W Y O R K 1 1 7 9 3
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Ours are 35% LESS.
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OUR RATES THEIR RATES
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SAFE Smart Testing, Education and Licensing: The Test
in the Bar By Paul Donohue, CRMS
Five Steps to Get the Media Exposure You Deserve
By Josephine Nicholas
The NAMB Perspective
NMP Mortgage Professional of the Month: Kelley
Berkheiser, Branch Development Manager, Guaranteed
Home Mortgage Company
Value Nation: Is There a Better Way to Select Appraisers?
By Charlie W. Elliott Jr., MAI, SRA
HOPE NOW Takes Foreclosure Solutions on the Road
By Eric C. Peck
FHA Insider: New FHA Rule All Brokers Now Have
Access to FHA Loans By Jeff Mifsud
The Secondary Market Overview: Rub-a-Dub-Dub The
Fed Pulls the Plug By Dave Hershman
Regulatory Compliance Outlook: May 2010Mortgage
Loan Officers Lose Administrative Exemption
By Jonathan Foxx
Trend Spotter: Real Estate Investors The $141 Billion
Market By Gibran Nicholas
Mortgage Originators be Warned: Credit Repair Could
End Your Mortgage Career! By Terry W. Clemans
Ask Tommy: Your QC Expert By Tommy A. Duncan, CMT
Forward on Reverse: Spring Sale in Reverse Country
By Atare E. Agbamu, CRMS
Brokers Dont Jump Ship! By Paul A. Lucido
A View From the C-Suite: Branch Development Four
C Tips From the C Suite By David Lykken
Branch Development: Steer Clear of Risks and Focus on
the Finish Line By Joe Ramis
Mortgage Branching in a Changing Industry
By Mark Buskuhl
Establishing the Branch Relationship
By Shawn Sirko & Tina Jablonski
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May 2010
Volume 2 Number 5
1220 Wantagh Avenue Wantagh, NY 11793-2202
Phone: (516) 409-5555 / (888) 409-9770
Fax: (516) 409-4600
Web site: www.nationalmortgageprofessional.com
Mortgage
PROFESSIONAL
N A T I O N A L
M A G A Z I N E
Your source for the latest on originations, settlement, and servicing
STAFF
Eric C. Peck
Editor-in-Chief
(516) 409-5555, ext. 312
ericp@nmpmediacorp.com
Andrew T. Berman
Executive Vice President
(516) 409-5555, ext. 333
andrew@nmpmediacorp.com
Domenica Trafficanda
Art Director
domenicat@nmpmediacorp.com
Karen Krizman
Senior National Account Executive
(516) 409-5555, ext. 326
karenk@nmpmediacorp.com
Jon Blake
Advertising Coordinator
(516) 409-5555, ext. 301
jonb@nmpmediacorp.com
Jennifer Moeller
Billing Coordinator
(516) 409-5555, ext. 324
jenniferm@nmpmediacorp.com
ADVERTISING
To receive any information regarding advertising rates, deadlines and require-
ments, please contact Senior National Account Executive Karen Krizman at
(516) 409-5555, ext. 326 or e-mail karenk@nmpmediacorp.com.
ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS/PRESS RELEASES
To submit any material, including articles and press releases, please
contact Editor-in-Chief Eric C. Peck at (516) 409-5555, ext. 312 or e-mail
ericp@nmpmediacorp.com. The deadline for submissions is the first of
the month prior to the target issue.
SUBSCRIPTIONS
To receive subscription information, please call (516) 409-5555, ext.
301; e-mail orders@nmpmediacorp.com or visit www.nationalmort-
gageprofessional.com. Any subscription changes may be made to the
attention of Circulation via fax to (516) 409-4600.
Statements, articles and opinions in National Mortgage Professional Magazine
are the responsibility of the authors alone and do not imply the opinion or
endorsement of NMP Media Corp., or the officers or members of National
Association of Mortgage Brokers and its State Affiliates (NAMB), National
Association of Professional Mortgage Women (NAPMW), National Credit
Reporting Association (NCRA) and/or other state mortgage trade associations.
Participation in NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA, and/or other state mortgage
trade associations events, activities and/or publications is available on
a non-discriminatory basis and does not reflect the endorsement of the
product and/or services by NMP Media Corp., NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA,
and other state mortgage trade associations.
National Mortgage Professional Magazine, NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA,
and/or other state mortgage trade associations do not make any misrepre-
sentations or warranties concerning the regulatory and/or compliance
aspects of advertisers, products or services and/or the editorial content
contained in NMP Media Corp. publications. National Mortgage Professional
Magazine and NMP Media Corp. reserve the right to edit, reject and/or post-
pone the publication of any articles, information or data.
National Mortgage Professional Magazine
is published monthly by NMP Media Corp.
Copyright 2010 NMP Media Corp.
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A Message From NMP Media Corp.
Executive Vice President Andrew T. Berman
Making the change?
So many mortgage brokers over the last two years have been facing some serious deci-
sions, such as closing up shop and joining a larger entity (i.e. branch manager position).
In this issue, we focus on Branch Development. The section begins with a piece from
Paul A. Lucido of PRMG call Brokers Dont Jump Ship! Paul makes a great case for
riding out the storm in what many still feel is a great business model. In this section,
David Lykkens A View From the C-Suite shares some tips on how to find the right
branch partner when looking to make a change. Later in the section, Joe Ramis of
Inlanta Mortgage shares his tips on what to demand from your partner when looking to
make the change. There are a few more pieces in the section that will help you better inform yourself
before making the change. The section wraps up with a Whos Hiring directory which includes some of
the top branch opportunities currently out there.
Inspiration for success in 2010 and
beyond from Mortgage Revolution
On May 6-7, there was an event happening in San
Francisco that was truly a game-changer for many
Mortgage Revolution. This Mastermind Event was the cre-
ation of Mark Green, Mark Madsen and Brian Larrabee. In
San Francisco, there was help from local hosts like Think
Big, Work Small and folks like Ginger Bell who helped put
together the amazing speaker lineup, and David Childers
who handled the logistics of the event.
Mortgage Revolution is an event for the mortgage
originator by the mortgage originator. The speakers,
many of whom are top originators in their respective
markets, are free-flowing with their ideas. As Carl White
from MortgageMarketingAnimals.com put it: The shar-
ing of the ideas. The mastermind concept. There is no
mine and yours. Everyone is sharing their best ideas. As
we share ideas together, Ill benefit from yours and you
will benefit from mine.
In Carl White and Chris Browns session, they shared
ideas to help create Facebook pages that attract referring
real estate agents like flies to a picnic. The session had
attendees including Tim Swierczek of Creative Mortgage Partners in Minnesota and Matt Miller from First
Priority Financial in Sacramento walk out of the session ready to start implementing Carl Whites Facebook
ninja tactics immediately. Even video master Roberto Monaco, learned about perfecting his Facebook
page.
I learned that I am not being effective with my Facebook page, said Monaco. I have lots of friends
and family view my page, but my Facebook page is not targeted. I have thousands of people in my social
network, but they are not clients and potential clients. I am attracting people, but not the people who
need help with my services. Its about the numbers with the right people.
Monaco delivered a powerful session with Jeff Paro on video marketing. Roberto gave simple steps on
how to make a video right there in the session! He actually had the room full of attendees walking out of
the room screaming, I am a video making machine! (spoken in Robertos Brazilian accent). Between
Roberto and Jeffs session, and Frank Garay and Brian Stevens from Think Big Work Small, its no wonder
guys like Ted Gross from Milestone Mortgage walked away saying, I need to get video savvy!
There were countless other power presentations at Mortgage Revolution, too many to list here, and
there will be a video of the full conference available shortly. In fact, the founders of Mortgage Revolution,
agreed to offer the most powerful presentation of the event (quite possibly the most powerful ever at a
mortgage industry event), Todd Duncans opening session. Todd is responsible for training some of the
industry most successful mortgage originators, yet faced some failure and personal setbacks. He took these
hard lessons and presented a session that left guys like Hans Bruhner of First Priority Financial from Samoa
County, Calif. saying, Todd Duncan talking about transparency, accountability and memories was huge.
Life changing! You can view Todds presentation at www.MRev.org.
As Sponsorship Chairman of Mortgage Revolution, I was truly fortunate to have been able to take part
in this event and get a first-hand perspective of seeing the inspiration happen live in person! As Torry
Burdick from Mortgage Success Source put it, This has been the most amazing two days of the industry
getting together, getting ready and poised to take back the world. Everyone has been very giving by shar-
ing what is working for them. There were a lot of great speakers and sessions not a lot of platitudes,
but really a lot of back-to-basics sessions and presentations on what works successfully and how these suc-
cesses can work for you.
Sincerely,
Andrew T. Berman, Executive Vice President
NMP Media Corp.
Todd Duncan, one of the speakers of the Mortgage
Revolution event in San Francisco, delivers his
inspirational message to a packed house
National Credit Reporting Association Inc.
125 East Lake Street, Suite 200 O Bloomingdale, IL 60108
Phone #: (630) 539-1525 O Fax #: (630) 539-1526
Web site: www.ncrainc.org
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The National Association of
Mortgage Brokers
7900 Westpark Drive, Suite T-309 O McLean, VA 22102
Phone: (703) 342-5900 O Fax: (703) 342-5905
Web site: www.namb.org
PresidentJim Pair, CMC
Mortgage Associates Corpus Christi
6262 Weber Road, Suite 208
Corpus Christi, TX 78413
(361) 853-9987
jimpair@namb.org
President-ElectWilliam Howe, CMC, CRMS
Howe Mortgage Corporation
9414 E. San Salvador Drive, #236
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
(602) 200-8100
billhowe@namb.org
Vice PresidentMichael DAlonzo, CMC
Creative Mortgage Group
1126 Horsham Road, Suite D
Maple Glen, PA 19002
(215) 657-9600
michaeldalonzo@namb.org
SecretaryGinny Ferguson, CMC
Heritage Valley Mortgage Inc.
5700 Stoneridge Mall Road, Suite 150
Pleasanton, CA 94588
(925) 469-0100
ginnyferguson@namb.org
TreasurerDon Frommeyer, CRMS
Amtrust Mortgage Funding Inc.
200 Medical Drive, Suite D
Carmel, IN 46032
(317) 575-4355
donfrommeyer@namb.org
Joe Camarena
The Mortgage Source
10120 Southwest Nimbus Avenue, Suite C-7
Portland, OR 97223
(503) 443-1060 O joecamarena@namb.org
John Councilman, CMC, CRMS
AMC Mortgage Corporation
2613 Fallston Road O Fallston, MD 21047
(410) 557-6400 O jlc@amcmortgage.com
Olga Kucerak
Crown Lending
8700 Crown Hill Boulevard, Suite 804 O San Antonio, TX 78209
(210) 828-3384 O olga@crownlending.com
Walt Scott
Excalibur Financial Inc.
175 Strafford Avenue, Suite 1 O Wayne, PA 19087
(215) 669-3273 O waltscott@namb.org
Don Starks
D.C. Starks Mortgage Associates Inc.
141 South Main Street O Bourbonnais, IL 60914
(815) 935-0710 O donstarks@namb.org
Marty FlynnPresident
(925) 831-3520, ext. 224
marty@ccireports.com
Tom ConwellVice President
(248) 473-7400
tconwell@credittechnologies.com
Daphne LargeTreasurer
(901) 259-5105
daphnel@datafacts.com
William BowerDirector
(800) 288-4757
wbower@confinfo.com
Mike BrownDirector
(800) 285-6691
mike.brown@ncogroup.com
Susan CataldoDirector
(404) 303-8656, ext. 204
susancds@cdsusa.net
Nancy FedichDirector
(908) 813-8555, ext. 3010
nancy@cisinfo.net
Sanford (Sandy) LubinDirector
(805) 481-3155
slubin@cbslo.com
Judy RyanDirector
(800) 929-3400, ext. 201
jryan@kroll.com
Tom SwiderDirector
(856) 787-9005, ext. 1201
tswider@creditlenders.com
Donald J. UngerDirector
(303) 670-7993, ext. 222
don@advcredit.com
NCRA Staff
Terry ClemansExecutive Director
(630) 539-1525
tclemans@ncrainc.org
Jan GerberOffice
Manager/Membership Services
(630) 539-1525
jgerber@ncrainc.org
President
Liz Roberts-Fajardo, GML
(702) 498-8020
lvlizrf@aol.com
President-Elect
Gary Tumbiolo, CMI
(919) 452-1529
garytumbiolo@aol.com
Senior Vice President
Sharon Patrick, MML, CMI
(386) 985-1620
howell@cfl.rr.com
Vice President/Northwestern Region
Jill M. Kinsman
(206) 344-7827
jill.kinsman@usbank.com
Vice President/Western Region
Tim Courtney
(760) 792-5620
desertranchrealty@hotmail.com
Vice President/Central Region
Candace Smith, CMI
(512) 329-9040
csmith@wrstarkey.com
Vice President/Greater Northeast
Region
Colleen-Therese McKeever, CMI
(646) 584-8332
colleenmckeever@aol.com
Vice President/Southeastern Region
Jessica Edmonston
(919) 414-3028
jedmon3601@yahoo.com
Secretary
Laurie Abisher, GML, CMI
(661) 283-1262
lauriea@gemcorp.com
Treasurer
Kay Talley, MML
(919) 846-4294
kay.talley@genworth.com
Parliamentarian
Hulene Bridgman-Works
(972) 494-2788
hulene137@yahoo.com
NAMB Board of Directors
National Association of Professional
Mortgage Women
P.O. Box 140218 O Irving, TX 75014-0218
Phone: (800) 827-3034 O Fax: (469) 524-5121
Web site: www.napmw.org
Officers
Directors
2010 Board of Directors
National Board of Directors
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NAMB applauds three
housing bills approved by
the House Committee on
Financial Services
The National
Association of
Mortgage Brokers
(NAMB) has applauded the House Committee
on Financial Services for passing three bills
positively affecting the mortgage indus-
try, clearing the bills for consideration
by the full U.S. House of
Representatives. The bills would,
among other things, provide additional
funding for the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Rural Housing
Service Loan Guarantee Program
(Section 502 Loans); would extend the
National Flood Insurance Program; and
would provide necessary Federal
Housing Administration (FHA) reform to
continue offering borrowers affordable
mortgage options.
These bills have cleared a legislative
hurdle today, and NAMB commends
members of the House Committee on
Financial Services for taking a step for-
ward in addressing the nations afford-
able housing needs, said NAMB
President Jim Pair, CMC.
NAMB recently sent a letter to
Congress urging them to not allow the
USDA Loan Guarantee Program to
exhaust its fiscal year federal funding,
which was projected to run out within
days. HR 5017, the Rural Housing
Preservation and Stabilization Act of
2010, sponsored by Rep. Paul Kanjorksi
(D-PA), would provide additional budg-
et authority for USDA to continue to
guarantee rural loans, as well as make
the Loan Guarantee Program self-fund-
ed going forward. HR 5017 has been
approved on the House floor under sus-
pension of the rules.
NAMB, along with a coalition of
industry representatives, sent a letter to
the House Committee on Financial
Services in support of FHA reform
included in HR 5072, the FHA Reform
Act of 2010, sponsored by Reps.
Maxine Waters (D-CA), Barney Frank
(D-MA), Al Green (D-TX), Shelley Moore
Capito (R-WV).
NAMB also advocated for an exten-
sion to the National Flood Insurance
Program and other provisions designed
to strengthen the program included in
HR 5114, the Flood Insurance Reform
Priorities Act of 2010, sponsored by
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA). HR 5114 will
be considered on the House floor short-
ly, a definitive date has not yet been
chosen.
NAMB looks forward to continuing
its work with members of Congress as
the bills move forward, in what is sure
to be a victory for consumers, said
Pair.
For more information, visit www.namb.org.
FHA to issue regulations
to increase net worth
requirements of
approved lenders
The Federal Housing
Administration (FHA)
has announced new
regulations to fur-
ther reduce and bet-
ter manage counterparty risks to its
insurance funds as it continues to play
a critical role in the nations housing
market. FHA will issue regulations to
increase the net worth requirements
of FHA-approved lenders, strengthen
lender approval criteria, and make
lenders liable for the oversight of
mortgage brokers.
These changes support quality
mortgage lenders while excluding
organizations that are ill-equipped to
handle the risk associated with market
variations, said FHA Commissioner
David H. Stevens. That is particularly
important now when a robust, compet-
itive mortgage finance market is a cru-
cial element in rebuilding the American
economy. Lenders bear the overall risk
of FHA-endorsed loans, therefore it
makes sense for them to approve their
counterparties and have sufficient cap-
ital to operate.
The final rule permits FHA to more
effectively focus its resources on
lenders that pose the greatest potential
threat to its insurance funds and to
ensure that lenders possess the
resources appropriate for the financial
services they deliver. FHA solicited pub-
lic comments on this new regulation
and considered those comments in the
development of the final rule.
On Sept. 18, 2009 FHA Commissioner
Stevens announced a set of credit poli-
cy changes that enhanced FHAs risk
SAFE Educations Best Kept Secret
Imagine a class that offers the convenience of online access, yet gives you
the powerful experience of a live event. Think about a class without the cost
of travel or disconnect from the office, yet puts you right into the class live
with the instructor in real-time.
The revolution in mortgage education that is taking the industry by sur-
prise is Online, Live Equivalent With Live Instructor. Often an overlooked op-
tion, this Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System (NMLS)-approved classroom
equivalent format delivers the convenience of online and the powerful im-
pact of a live classroom event.
Online, Live Equivalent
Because of the obtuse descriptive name Live Equivalent, many people are
missing the distinct advantages of this best kept secret in education. This ver-
satile format is an online delivery of an actual live class event. Online, Live
Equivalent education can be streamed anywhere across the nation to your
computer or to a group in the conference room at your office. This interac-
tive format may include full audio and video streaming of the instructor
teaching the material in real-time.
When considering an Online, Live Equivalent course, be sure your provider
offers all the course text, the live PowerPoint presentation, exercises, quizzes
and the ability to interact directly with the instructor. One advantage to live
equivalent is that your questions are answered and you hear the responses
to other students live while you are absorbing the material. Your retention is
enhanced by participating in a live class over a concentrated two- or three-
day period and because you are not reading or working alone.
Know Your Options
When choosing your pre-licensing (PE) course, keep in mind not every edu-
cation format is appropriate for you. Each persons learning style is different.
Only you know how you learn and retain information. If you prefer online ed-
ucation to live classroom, keep in mind self-paced online is approved for con-
tinuing education, but not for PE. The only other approved online format for
PE is instructor-led online.
Instructor-led online education is similar to a correspondence course with
a defined start and end period; normally spread out over 10 days or two
weeks. The instructor leads the students through the course by assigning read-
ing material, exercises and quizzes that the student must complete on their
own. The advantage of this format is that the student can fit the coursework
in on their own free time. The disadvantages are the student must do all the
reading on their own and the additional time it takes to complete all the ex-
ercises and assignments. Do you remember homework?
SAFE-Smart Tip
Your education choice will be critical to your success on the test, so choose
wisely. If you prefer online education, the advantages of Online, Live Equiv-
alent are significant. It delivers the powerful impact of a live class, the ac-
cessibility of online, you get the class done in 20 concentrated hours and
there is no homework.
My SAFE-Smart Tip is to check out this best kept secret of SAFE education.
Paul Donohue, CRMS is a 23-year industry professional and founder of Abacus
Mortgage Training and Education. Paul served on two NMLS working groups, es-
tablishing the new national education protocols. Go to AbacusMortgageTrain-
ing.com to find out more about your obligations for testing, education and
licensure, or call (888) 341-7767.
continued on page 7
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Heres what our customers are saying:
My loan ofcers have been closing more loans
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in the media whom you want to
address, and drill down on the message
you will be sending them.
Ask yourself questions like:
O Which media outlets are best posi-
tioned to get the word out about you
and your knowledge?
O What are the current
headline stories in
your market, and how
can you contribute a
new voice to those
subjects?
O What angles are these
media outlets not
addressing that you
have the scoop on?
Once youve answered
these questions, you have
what you need to start
creating the message;
now you can start writing
your messages down in
the form of press releases.
When you tell the local
media how a national cri-
sis is affecting the local
market (true stories from
your clients or referral
partners), this gives you the star quality
and authentic perspective that others
may not have.
I suggest telling your message
through a press release format, because
its something the media outlets are
used to seeing; however, you can write
a talking points outline, which will also
serve a good purpose when you get
ready to approach the media.
In writing a press release, you want
to make sure you stick to facts and your
expert opinion on how these facts
affect your target market. Make sure
your release is written in story format,
spiced throughout with quotes by you
as the expert. Many outlets will copy
and paste your quotes directly into
their print/online media or re-quote
you on the radio/TV. You will want to
make sure the title of your release is
not too long, because they wont open
it with a lengthy title. Sprinkle direct
links to your site, graphs, charts, etc.,
within the release; this serves two pur-
posesit points the media back to you,
and it validates your release. Make sure
you do not sell or market yourself
throughout the release or you will get
blacklisted. These releases are strictly
a way to get your information to the
mediathe fact that you are the expert
quoted, sells you to the media and
audience.
What many of us dont always realize
is that, though the media may seem
like they are unapproachable, in most
cases, they are desperate for new infor-
How many times have you watched the
news, listened to the radio or read the
paper and thought, I could have been
the mortgage expert they inter-
viewed. If your answer is many
times, this article is for you. As a pub-
lic relations agent with clients scattered
throughout different industries across
the country, I would like
to pass on five PR tips
that will help you posi-
tion yourself as the
medias local expert.
Now, more than ever, our
industry needs positive
media exposure, so read
on and get ready to be
the medias newest star!
Step #1: Find
yourself
The first step in getting
the media exposure you
deserve is to understand
your own value and why
the media needs you.
There are several things
you may be an expert in,
including:
1. Unique financial con-
cept(s) you implement in your mort-
gage practice
2. A segment of your local market that
you focus on:
a. Investment properties
b. High-end homes
c. Foreclosures
3. Unique referral partners
The list is endless; each of us operates
our business differently, and we all have
something at which we are so good we
could do it in our sleep. Take some time to
really find out what that niche is for you.
Once you find out your forte, and
where you are most confident in your
mortgage practice, go one step further
and make sure you thoroughly under-
stand your subject matter and become
a student of the market and study
human behavior. Examine what others
are doing and talking about in the
media, see what angles they are pre-
senting on the subject matters you are
most qualified in. Be a student of your
clients and referral partnersfind out
what the market is lacking that the
media is not providing. Use resources
available to you to refine your expert-
ise, and get groundedbe the best in
those areas that you can possibly be.
Now that youve solidified your cor-
ner of the market, you are ready to go
out and educate the media.
Step #2: Create your tar-
get audience and message
Its time to create the group of people
Five Steps to Get the Media
Exposure You Deserve
Theres something
else youll want to
keep in mindthe
media doesnt always
credit you with its
newfound knowledge
that youve so gra-
ciously provided.
By Josephine Nicholas
mation, facts and story ideas. You will
be invaluable to them if you provide
them with quality content.
Step #3: Send the infor-
mation to the media
You are now ready to send your infor-
mation out to the media. There are pro-
grams available that have the direct
contact information to local and nation-
al media outlets. You can plug into
those sources, or you can gather all the
direct contact information for your tar-
get media outlets and send it to them
one by one. You can also connect with a
PR agent to do this for you. Many PR
agents charge unnecessarily large
monthly fees, so make sure you find
one who is charging a fair price for the
service they are offering.
Step #4: Respond well to
the media
Make sure that you and your team
members prepare a system to handle
the media response. Sometimes, you
will get an immediate flurry of activity
from the media; other times, they save
your release and information and con-
tact you at a future date; and still other
times, they reprint your quotes, or talk
about you on the radio and TV without
telling you first.
Remember, you are helping the
media sound smarterthey value that
and respect you for helping them carry
out their job well. Additionally, you are
contributing to the greater good of soci-
ety by easing clients and the publics
fearsso, keep in mind that, although
you wont always know the entirety of
the impact youre having, be assured
your message is reaching its audience.
Theres something else youll want to
keep in mindthe media doesnt
always credit you with its newfound
knowledge that youve so graciously
provided. Yet, whether you are or arent
getting the credit for the information
quoted, keep the big picture in mind
you are affecting more people than you
could possibly imagine by passing this
knowledge on to the media, and you
will get rewarded.
When the media outlets answer,
respect their time and questions
remember they are generally working
on very tight deadlines. In your phone
interview or e-mail reply back, stick to
your expert opinion on how the news
and the facts in your press release affect
the medias target market. If you dont
have the correct information readily
available, do not make the mistake of
misquoting an answer to their ques-
tion; tell them you will get back to
them with that particular answer. Then,
promptly use the resources available to
you to gather that information and
send it to them that same day. They will
be more impressed with your solution
to take more time and effort to find for
them the correct answers, than with
you making a fool out of them by sup-
plying them with misinformation. This
is also an opportunity for you to show
that you run a high quality mortgage
firm, by having access to resources oth-
ers may not have available to them.
Remember, once you earn the
medias trust as a reliable source, they
will call on you time and again.
Step #5: Repeat
Media outreach is not a one-night
stand; you want to repeat these steps
over and over in your business practice
to get the most effect out of your
media campaign. As with everything in
life, consistency matters, so stay
focused and dont get discouraged.
Once youve earned a good reputa-
tion with the media contacts, media
professionals will forward your releases
to colleagues, save your releases, and
put you on their lists so that when they
need a certain question answered,
theyll reach out to you, the expert.
Josephine Nicholas runs her own public
relations agency, icheadlines.com. She
specializes in helping map out individu-
alized media campaigns, and offers a
comprehensive array of services to han-
dle the diverse PR needs of her clients.
Josephines clients have also appeared in
other national and local media outlets,
including, but not limited to, MSNBC,
Fox Business News, CNN, NPR; in The
Wall Street Journal, Reuters, The New
York Times, The Washington Post,
Financial Advisor Magazine, Financial
Planner Magazine, CPA Magazine, and
various entertainment and lifestyle out-
lets. She may be reached by e-mail at
josephine@icheadlines.com.
The Ever Growing Voice of NAMB
in Our Nations Capitol
A Message From NAMB President Jim Pair, CMC
There seems to be some concern with a small number our members
regarding what is happening in Washington, D.C. and what the
National Association of Mortgage Brokers is doing to ensure our
industry is being protected.
Let me assure you that legislative protection is the highest priori-
ty of your association. Our staff and our lobby team are constantly
monitoring Capitol Hill and the agencies to learn the hot issues of the day. The
rapport we have on the Hill and with the agencies is the best we have ever expe-
rienced in the history of our association.
Lets look back and see where we were and where we are now. For many
years, we played a very small role in Washington, D.C. It was difficult to find
anyone who would meet with us to hear our position on issues that directly
affect our industry.
Through the strong leadership of previous boards and a constant message
that benefitted not only our industry, but protected the consumer, we now
have a seat at the table. We are invited to present our position at various leg-
islative committee hearings. We are able to meet with the various regulatory
agencies as proposed rules are being formulated. We are respected as a voice
of our industry.
Some of our positions have taken years to be implemented either by Congress
or the regulatory agencies. Lets look at two good examples of how long the
process can take.
The first example is the passing of the Secure and Fair Enforcement for
Mortgage Licensing Act (SAFE Act), which created the National Registry and the
licensing of loan originators. Another example is the Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) now allowing all mortgage brokers to originate FHA loans
without having to go through the cost of an audited statement. These issues were
advocated by NAMB for years before they became a reality.
The strong relationship that NAMB has developed with Congress over the past
few years gives us the opportunity to be a part of legislative process from the very
beginning. We now have the opportunity to hear what is being considered and
lend our voice on how this would impact our industry and the consumers. Two
examples of NAMB being invited to be a part of the process in the early stages was
when Congress was considering a net worth requirement of $1 million for mort-
gage brokers and the banning of yield spread premiums (YSPs) as part of new bill.
Working directly with staff and the legislators themselves in the very beginning,
we were able to have both dropped. These two issues would have put the mort-
gage broker out of business.
It seems that there is something happening, almost on a daily basis, in
Washington, D.C. It is very important that you, as a member of NAMB, are kept
informed of those issues that affect our industry and the way we do business.
NAMB communicates these messages by e-mails to its membership. We use
legislative alerts, weekly News From NAMB bulletins and Calls to Action
when your help is needed on a particular issue. Hopefully, if you are an NAMB
member, you are receiving all these types of correspondence from us. If not,
please check your computer to see if it is blocking e-mails from NAMB. If it is
not, please contact Paul Nierman of NAMBs Membership Department at
pneirmann@namb.org to verify your current e-mail address in the NAMB
database. This will allow us to make any corrections to ensure you receive
these important e-mails in the future.
NAMBs Web site, www.namb.org, is a good way to keep yourself updated on
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legislative matters and other important information about what is happening
with your association. You will be able to review the accomplishments of your
association by clicking on the document, What Has NAMB Done in 2009. This
document will give you a breakdown of the month-by-month happenings of the
association in 2009.
The reasons for the success of our national association in Washington, D.C.
over the past years is due to the dedicated staff at NAMB, the many volunteers
and members who have served on the Government Affairs Committee and
have given so much of their time and talent to the legislative issues, and an
exceptional team of lobbyists. Without these ingredients, NAMB would not
have been able to accomplish our objective of protecting our industry and the
consumers we serve.
Jim Pair, CMC is with Mortgage Associates Corpus Christi and is president of the
National Association of Mortgage Brokers. He may be reached by e-mail at jim-
pair@namb.org.
Certification? Certainly!
The Buzz Around Certification
A Message From NAMB Certifications Committee
Chair Pava J. Leyrer, CMC, CRMS
My article this month is really geared toward those individuals who
have already taken the voluntary steps of validating the knowledge,
skills and abilities they possess beyond the regular scope of their jobs.
We have the attitude that our professions are worth the extra effort
to become certified and proudly display those certifications.
We realize the growing statistics that consumers are looking for
those individuals who set themselves apart and are able to demonstrate their will-
ingness to excel. It has been increasingly difficult for mortgage brokers and loan
originators to show that the media accounts of the minority in our industry are
no different than bad actors in other industries.
Being certified and showing your commitment to honesty and lending
integrity are key ways to promote our passion and ability to provide for fam-
ilies in our communities. Those of us still surviving and fighting for the rights
of our customers show these very aspects every time we help someone in
need.
The National Association of Mortgage Brokers is proud of every person who has
taken the time and effort to reach the goals of certification they earned through
education, experience and hard work. This is nothing new to those of us who are
diligent in what we have done for homeowners and will continue to do. Share the
benefits you have received from certification with someone today. Let them know
that this is a great way to promote and take pride in a profession that is extreme-
ly important and represents our united dream the American dream of home-
ownership.
Those who are not certified may already have the education and criteria to meet
the requirements. Check out the Certification section of NAMBs Web site,
http://www.namb.org/namb/Certification_Home.asp?SnID=1414598388, apply today
to broaden your horizons and become certified.
Pava J. Leyrer, CMC, CRMS, is president and owner of Heritage National Mortgage
Corporation in Grandville, Mich., and Certifications Committee chair for the
National Association of Mortgage Brokers. She may be reached by phone at (616)
534-4993 or e-mail pava@heritagenational.com.
For more information on the National Association of Mortgage Brokers, visit www.namb.org.
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Flood Certication Report
Automated Valuation Model (AVM) Reports
Verication of Employment (VOE)
Learn more about our services by calling,
Lorenzo Pugliano, President and CEO
at 631-299-2084.
www.platinumcreditservices.com
Heres what our customers are saying:
By using PCSs VOE service, I was able to move the
cost onto the HUD1 and virtually get the VOEs done at
no cost to my company
PCSs high level of customer service ensures that my
loans close on TIME!
Consensus of opinion?
Although Charlie W. Elliott Jr.s article [National Mortgage Professional Magazine,
April 2010 issue, page 4] was well written and easy to understand, his article or
more accurately, editorial, The Mortgage Meltdown and Appraiser Selection,
was long on hyperbole and short on facts. He never mentioned whose opinion
was being referred to, but used consensus of opinion as the basis to support a
model that benefits his appraisal business makes a very weak argument.
Everyone faces moral and ethical decisions, why do appraisers need spe-
cial consideration to keep them honest?
It would have been much more enlightening to read why appraisers
arent strong enough to resist unethical and illegal acts.
Then these reasons could be addressed through background checks, ethics
training, etc. This would be much more efficient, and ultimately, benefit the
industry and more importantly, the consumer. On the surface, the current
appraisal process sounds logical, but in practice its a mess and is hurting the
consumer in countless ways, which Im sure you are already aware.
Should we also create intermediaries between loan officers and con-
sumers to avoid undue influence? How about between lobbyists and legis-
lators? Did you know we can eliminate car accidents by banning automo-
biles? Yes, stricter rules do come at a price, whether youre an advocate or
not depends on who is paying, and who is collecting.
Brian D. Tata, President, Advanced Mortgage Corporation, Warwick, R.I.
Certainly, I respect Mr. Tatas opinion and his right to it. It is not my nature
to argue over such issues; however, given his interest in facts, I will respond
with some facts to ponder.
O Due to bad loans, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have both been taken over by
the federal government and are costing the taxpayers billions of dollars. (fact)
O Since 2007, we have had 230 banks failures, due to toxic mortgages,
with Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) losses of $60 billion,
and there is much more to come. (fact)
O By the end of 2011, we will have experienced, in four years, 10-plus mil-
lion home foreclosures. (likely fact)
Our country cannot afford another mortgage meltdown. Background
checks and ethics training will not solve the problem. The taxpayers, bank
stockholders and homeowners deserve better.
Charlie W. Elliott Jr., MAI, SRA, President, Elliott & Company
Appraisers, Greensboro, N.C.
approved by FHA, will be author-
ized to continue to originate FHA-
insured loans through the end of
the calendar year without sponsor-
ship of an FHA-approved lender.
Commencing Jan. 1, 2011, howev-
er, the origination authority will
end.
For more information, visit www.hud.gov.
FHA withdraws approval
of two lenders
The Federal Housing
Administration (FHA)
has announced that it
is permanently with-
drawing its approval
of Atlanta-based RSA
Financial Inc. and 1st Alliance
Mortgage LLC of Houston, Texas. The
actions announced prevent these
lenders from originating and under-
writing new FHA-insured mortgages or
from participating in the FHA single-
family insurance program. The U.S.
Department of Housing & Urban
Developments (HUD) Mortgagee
Review Board (MRB) also voted to
impose a $15,000 civil penalty against
RSA and seek $267,900 from 1st
Alliance.
HUDs MRB cited RSA for misleading
HUD that it was properly licensed by
the Georgia Department of Banking
and Finance at the time the company
submitted an application to FHA for
lender approval. In addition, the MRB
alleges that RSA submitted false and/or
misleading information regarding the
criminal conviction and sanction histo-
ry of its owner and executive, Ramsey
Suphi Agan. HUD claims 1st Alliance
engaged in prohibited branch arrange-
ments, provided false certifications,
failed to implement a quality control
plan, and a number of other violations
of HUD/FHA standards.
If lenders want to do business with
the FHA, its critical that they provide
complete and truthful information so
that we can properly determine who
were dealing with, said FHA
Commissioner David H. Stevens. If any
lender cant operate within FHAs guide-
lines, they cant do business with us.
The permanent withdrawal of RSA
Financials FHA approval is based upon
violations set forth in a Notice of
Violation dated Dec. 4, 2009. RSAs
application to FHA contained false
and/or materially misleading informa-
tion in connection with RSAs failure to
obtain proper licensing in the State of
Georgia and in connection with Agans
history of criminal convictions and
administrative sanctions. Specifically,
RSA represented that company officials
are neither currently, nor have ever
been, debarred, sanctioned, fined, con-
victed, denied approval, or refused a
license by any state, federal, or local
management function, including the
hiring of a Chief Risk Officer for the
first time in the agencys 75-year histo-
ry. In addition, Stevens announced his
intent to propose new regulations to
further strengthen FHAs risk manage-
ment. The final rule, to be published in
the next few days, makes good on that
promise and will:
O Strengthen the capacity of FHA-
approved lenders: Since 1993, FHA
has required approved lenders to
have a net worth of at least
$250,000. To ensure that FHA
lenders are sufficiently capitalized
to meet potential need, effective
immediately, all new lender appli-
cants for FHA programs must now
possess a minimum net worth of $1
million.
O Provide sufficient time for current
FHA lenders to increase net worth.
Effective one year following the
enactment of this rule:
O Current FHA approved lenders, with
the exception of small businesses,
must possess a minimum net worth
of $1 million;
O Current FHA-approved small busi-
ness lenders must possess a mini-
mum net worth of $500,000.
Effective three years following the
enactment of this provision:
O Approved lenders and applicants to
FHA single-family programs must
have a net worth of $1 million plus
one percent of total loan volume in
excess of $25 million.
O Approved lenders and applicants to
FHA multifamily programs must
have a minimum net worth of $1
million.
O Multifamily lenders that also
engage in mortgage servicing
must have an additional one per-
cent of total volume in excess of
$25 million.
O Multifamily lenders that do not
perform mortgage servicing must
have an additional 0.5 percent of
total loan volume in excess of $25
million.
O Streamline lender approval: FHA-
approved lenders currently assume
liability for all the loans they origi-
nate and/or underwrite. While
mortgage brokers will continue to
be able to originate FHA-insured
loans through their relationships
with approved lenders, they will
no longer receive independent
FHA eligibility approval. These
changes align FHA with Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac and have
potential to increase the number
of mortgage brokers eligible to
originate FHA-insured loans while
providing for more effective over-
sight of brokers by FHA-approved
lenders. Mortgage brokers or other
third-party originators, already
news flash continued from page 4
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Our data shows that mortgage ser-
vicers are continuing a strong effort on
proprietary and HAMP modifications in
the first two months of 2010, said
Faith Schwartz, executive director of
HOPE NOW. Additionally, we are
encouraged by the decreases in serious
delinquencies and foreclosures. With
almost four million loans currently in
default, we realize that our work is not
yet done. Since 2007, the industry has
completed more than 6.7 million work-
out solutions, including almost 2.7 mil-
lion loan modifications. Mortgage ser-
vicers and housing counselors have
worked extremely hard through aggres-
sive borrower outreach and HOPE NOW
remains determined to keep as many
families as possible in their homes.
HOPE NOW continues its efforts to
reach troubled homeowners via face-to-
face workshops held across the country
and the Homeowners HOPE Hotline at
(888) 995-HOPE. Additionally, HOPE
NOW recently introduced its Web portal,
Hope LoanPort, which allows non-profit
housing counselors working with home-
owners to securely upload completed
HAMP modification applications directly
to participating servicers.
For more information, visit
www.HopeNow.com.
MBA report: Nearly 1.2
million households lost
during the recession
Approximately 1.2
million households
were lost from 2005-
2008, despite the
population increase
of 3.4 million in the study area, as
Americans experienced one of the deepest
recessions in decades, according to a study
released by the Mortgage Bankers
Association (MBA). This decline in house-
holds is likely what contributed significant-
ly to the excess supply of apartments and
single family homes on the market.
The study, What Happens to
Household Formation in a Recession,
which was conducted by Professor Gary
Painter of University of Southern
California (USC) and sponsored by the
Research Institute for Housing America
(RIHA), analyzes the impact of economic
and housing conditions on household
formation and how the recent recession
has affected Americans propensity to
form new households, mobility trends,
and changes in the rate of overcrowding.
With such a significant drop in house-
holds nationwide, it is clear the most
recent recession impacted individuals
decisions to move out on their own and
caused many Americans to join already
formed households, said Painter, associ-
ate professor in the School of Policy,
Planning and Development at USC. Due
to data limitations, my analysis had to
focus on household formation as of 2008.
Clearly, given the depth of the downturn
government agency. Agan has been
suspended and debarred by HUD on at
least two occasions and has two felony
convictions.
In 1982, Agan pleaded guilty to two
counts of knowingly submitting false
statements for the purposes of influ-
encing the actions of a federally
insured bank. He was sentenced to two
years in prison (suspended), two years
of probation, and fined $10,000. These
actions led to the permanent with-
drawal of his former FHA-approved
company, Adana Mortgage Bankers,
and a five-year debarment of Agan. In
1988, Agan was convicted of multiple
counts of bribery by a Georgia Court,
causing HUD to debar Agan indefinite-
ly. RSA has 30 days to challenge the
withdrawal action before an adminis-
trative law judge.
The permanent withdrawal of 1st
Alliances FHA approval is based on
violations set forth in a Notice of
Violation dated Oct. 21, 2009. The
MRB alleges that 1st Alliance used
independent contractors to originate
708 loans from branch offices that
were not true branches of the compa-
ny and then falsely certified these
contractors were full-time employees
of the company. The MRB also con-
tends 1st Alliance failed to adopt and
maintain a required quality control
plan; failed to report employee com-
pensation on IRS Form W-2; charged
consumers unallowable, excessive or
duplicative loan processing and origi-
nation fees; and failed to properly
ensure that fees paid outside of clos-
ing were listed on borrowers HUD-1
Settlement Statements.
For more information, visit www.hud.gov.
HOPE NOW reports ser-
vicers finished 148,000
loan mods in February
HOPE NOW, the pri-
vate sector alliance
of mortgage ser-
vicers, investors,
mortgage insurers
and non-profit counselors has announced
that its February 2010 data estimates
95,586 homeowners received propri-
etary loan modifications for the month.
Combined with the United States
Treasurys recently released Home
Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)
data that showed 52,905 HAMP modifi-
cations for February, a total of 148,000
loan modifications were provided to
homeowners in February. Approximately
78 percent of the proprietary loan modi-
fications completed in February included
reduction of principal and interest.
The data also showed that foreclo-
sure starts and sales dropped 17 per-
cent for the month, along with a four
percent decrease in the number of 60-
plus day delinquencies. The total num-
ber of loan workout plans provided to
homeowners (including repayment
plans) in February was 279,831.
news flash continued from page 7
continued on page 10
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We make FHA and HVCC compliance easy
with our tools built around your business
We work with YOUR appraisers
Online automated appraisal ordering
Learn more about our services by calling,
Lorenzo Pugliano, President and CEO
at 631-299-2084.
www.platinumcreditservices.com
Heres what our customers are saying:
PCS appraisal management services allowed
me to create a virtual firewall between the loan
officers and the appraisers, yet still maintain
a high level of quality, fast, and accurate
appraisals
Each month, National Mortgage
Professional Magazine will focus on one
of the industrys top players in our
Mortgage Professional of the Month
feature. Our readers are encouraged to
contact us by e-mail at newsroom@nmp-
mediacorp.com for consideration in
being featured in a future Mortgage
Professional of the Month column.
This month, we had a chance to
chat with one of our advertisers, Kelley
Berkheiser, Branch Development
Manager of White Plains, N.Y.-based
Guaranteed Home Mortgage Company.
Kelley oversees the hiring, licensing,
transitioning and marketing of
Guaranteed Home Mortgages offices in
27 states nationwide. With more than
seven years of experience in marketing
and promotional activities, including a
stint with Kraft Foods where she won a
sales leadership award, Kelley also
assists Guaranteed with branch train-
ing, mortgage company research and
lead distribution.
Founded in 1992, Guaranteed Home
Mortgage Company, a licensed mortgage
investment and banking firm, is comprised
of more than 300 mortgage professionals.
The firm, previously named in the Inc. 500
Kelley Berkheiser, Branch Development Manager
Guaranteed Home Mortgage Company
list of the fastest growing companies in the
United States, provides residential mortgage
financing to a wide variety of consumers
and real estate professionals.
How does Guaranteed Home
Mortgage Company manage
the appraisal ordering process?
Guaranteed is full compliant with the
Home Valuation Code of Conduct
(HVCC). We apply the rules to both
agency and government loans. Our firm
has a list of approved appraisal man-
agement companies (AMCs) and we
restrict providers to this bi-monthly
updated list. The management compa-
ny makes payment arrangements with
the borrowers, and loan officers are
prohibited from dealing with the
appraiser directly.
Does Guaranteed Home
Mortgage allow branches to
act as a broker?
Guaranteed does permit its branches to
broker reverse mortgages and 203k. We
keep all Federal Housing Administration
(FHA) and conforming business in-
house. In days past, we were more
receptive to brokering conforming and
FHA loans, but because of the recent
heinous reps and warranties, it made no
sense to jeopardize the company. Also,
we are very protective of our FHA per-
formance. Brokering FHA is a recipe for
disaster as an investor might do an inad-
visable loan, but our company deals
with its performance.
We understand that Guaranteed
Home Mortgage offers lots of
free marketing services to its
branches. Do you feel that your
experience learning the market-
ing tricks in the highly competi-
tive consumer goods gives your
branches an upper hand in
their local market?
Our strength is that our branches
sales efforts remain autonomous. We
recognized long-ago that different
methods work in different demo-
graphics and geographies. Guaranteed
Home Mortgage regularly provides
strategic and monetary support
around a broad spectrum of available
marketing conduits. Because we wont
overlap our locations, our branches do
not have to compete
territorially, and we are
able to implement suc-
cessful marketing pro-
grams across the com-
pany. Simply put, we
strive to produce more
loans from existing loca-
tions, not more loca-
tions. It is better for our
employees and for the
company.
we are very protective of our
FHA performance. Brokering FHA
is a recipe for disaster as an
investor might do an inadvisable
loan, but our company deals with
its performance.
Our strength is that our
branches sales efforts remain
autonomous.
As the companys top branch
liaison, what are the biggest
problems branches face
when trying to get business
from local real estate
agents?
Many of the larger money center banks
have set-up shop within real estate bro-
kerage operations. These types of inte-
grated relationships create an initial
barrier of resistance for outside mort-
gage firms. However, the upside is that
our firm has the ability to offer many
more options and much quicker turn-
around. When word gets around a bro-
kerage shop that deals are getting done
with Guaranteed, we usually have no
further obstacles.
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agement companies (AMC) has more than
15 years of experience appraising residen-
tial properties, according to a new survey
conducted by the Title/Appraisal Vendor
Management Association (TAVMA). In addi-
tion, the survey showed that the vast
majority of appraisers used by TAVMA
members are certified appraisers, a desig-
nation that requires more experience and
an additional level of testing above the
state-licensed level.
According to the survey of TAVMA
members, 87 percent of appraisers
used by TAVMA members are certified
appraisers. According to the Federal
Financial Institutions Examination
Council (FFIEC) registry, 83 percent of
appraisers have a certified registration.
The certified designation is a higher
level of appraisal licensing than state
licensing. Although each state has its
own rules, many require additional
experience and testing-levels to reach
the certified level. States also demand
that appraisers successfully complete
continuing education classes each year
to maintain their licenses.
Our members, the nations largest
appraisal management companies,
monitor their roster of appraisers to
ensure that they are properly certified
and experienced for a specific assign-
ment, explained Jeff Schurman, exec-
utive director of TAVMA. We surveyed
our members to answer the allegations
that brokers and realtors have been
making in the media, regarding the
experience levels of AMC appraisers.
Our member survey clearly shows that
not only are AMC appraisers experi-
enced, the vast majority hold the high-
er, certified-level, appraisal credential.
AMCs currently provide approximate-
ly two-thirds of all residential appraisals
used in the mortgage industry, and
TAVMAs 45 AMC members together
account for more than 80 percent of this
volume. Although some AMCs employ in-
house appraisers, most assign orders to
local independent appraisers.
TAVMA members continually
review their roster of appraisers to
make sure that all certifications and
licenses are up to date, said
Schurman. This is just one element
that AMCs look at before assigning an
appraiser. They also look for an
appraiser who has experience within
an appropriate geographic area, usual-
ly not more than a 13-mile radius, and
with the property type in question.
For more information, visit www.tavma.org.
Wells Fargo signs HAMP
second lien modification
program agreement with
Treasury Department
Wells Fargo has announced
that it has signed the sec-
ond lien modification com-
ponent of the Obama
Administrations Home
Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
in 2009, and the ongoing weakness in
the job market through the beginning of
this year, this study gives no reason to
expect that household formation has
picked up at all.
The study includes analysis of data
from the past 40 years, a period cover-
ing six recessions, to examine the his-
torical impact of recessions and associ-
ated elevated unemployment rates on
the formation of new households.
Key findings from the study include:
O In a recession, the likelihood that a
young adult will form an independ-
ent household falls by up to four per-
centage points depending on the age
of the person and severity of the
changes in unemployment rates. In
this particularly severe recession, this
prediction has been borne out with
data through 2008 revealing a reduc-
tion of nearly 1.2 million households
nationwide despite the continued
increase in population and likely
even more households lost in 2009.
O Though the national homeownership
rate has fallen from a peak above 69
percent to just over 67 percent, this
decline may be understating the
magnitude of the change when we
take into account the simultaneous
drop in renter household formation.
In fact, the rental market saw a steep-
er decline in new households formed
than the homeownership market. As
a result of this drop, the denominator
in the homeownership rate calcula-
tion has been reduced, mitigating the
decline in homeownership.
O This recession has also caused a dra-
matic increase, almost five-fold, in
the rates of overcrowding (defined
as having more than one person per
room in the household), indicating
that many families are doubling up
in response to the downturn.
O Overall, there was a greater impact
on the creation of new households
among native born Americans over
new immigrant households. The data
show native born Americans experi-
enced a larger decline in household
formation and a larger increase in
overcrowding rates than immigrants.
O Children whose parents have higher
incomes are more likely to remain at
home, with this effect largest for youths
moving into the rental market. However,
children whose parents have higher
financial wealth are more likely to form
their own new rental households.
For more information, visit
www.housingamerica.org/index.htm or
www.mortgagebankers.org.
TAVMA report finds the
average AMC has 15-plus
years of experience
On average, an
appraiser work-
ing with major
appraisal man-
news flash continued from page 8
Is There a Better Way to
Select Appraisers?
Yes, we as taxpayers did lose hundreds
of billions of dollars recently due to the
mortgage crisis. This is the second time
that this has happened during my
career as a mortgage professional.
The first time it occurred was in the
1980s, when it was called the Savings &
Loan (S&L) Crisis. Back then, the govern-
ment stepped in and bailed out the S&Ls
along with some banks.
Many people blamed the
appraisers for the debacle,
because they were not state
licensed. The S&L bailout
resulted in a national cam-
paign to require state
licensing of all real estate
appraisers. Before that
time, appraisals had been
performed by designated
appraisers, who had
demonstrated their profi-
ciency through belonging
to appraisal trade groups,
such as the Appraisal
Institute and the American
Society of Appraisers. Now,
it seems that state licensing
of appraisers is not enough.
Many are blaming apprais-
ers yet again for the huge
losses experienced by the
banks. This time around,
there are practically no
S&Ls left. Will we ever
learn?
In an attempt to stem
further losses, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
and the Federal Housing Administration
(FHA) have taken steps to promote
appraiser independence by not allowing
mortgage brokers to select appraisers or
to place appraisal orders. This has
caused an outcry from many quarters in
the industry, including mortgage bro-
kers, Realtors and appraisers. They are
blaming appraisal management compa-
nies (AMCs) because they are now han-
dling appraisal orders, which once were
ordered by mortgage brokers. Those
complaining say that AMCs are apprais-
ing properties too low, using unquali-
fied appraisers, sending appraisers too
far to perform appraisals and not pay-
ing appraisers all of the fees collected
by the bank when the loan application
was taken.
If this sounds like sour grapes, it
probably is, at least some of it. Very few
of us in the mortgage loan industry are
making the money we
were two or three years
ago. People are trying to
position themselves to
make up for the shortfall.
Realtors need to close
deals, mortgage brokers
need to make loans and
appraisers need to perform
appraisals. The industry is
in an economic meltdown,
property values have plum-
meted, loan parameters
are tighter, many people
do not have jobs, and
those with jobs, in some
cases, are afraid that they
will lose them.
This all boils down to
very select few qualified
borrowers with tons of
people applying who do
not make the cut. What it
comes down to is that
many are blaming the
appraiser-selection sys-
tem for the lack of busi-
ness. Does this equate to
rigging the system to make loans close?
Is this not just what we are trying to get
away from? Appraisers must be inde-
pendent in order for them to provide
honest and accurate appraisals.
Given the above statements, should
we go back to the policies of the past
that got us into this mess, just to pro-
vide jobs to those who now do not
have as much income because of the
mortgage crisis? I should think not,
and as a taxpayer, I hope not. It is a
continued on page 13
Those complaining
say that AMCs are
appraising properties
too low, using unquali-
fied appraisers, send-
ing appraisers too far
to perform appraisals
and not paying
appraisers all of the
fees collected by the
bank when the loan
application was taken.
By Charlie W. Elliott Jr., MAI, SRA
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Our goal is to help Mortgage Profes-
sionals close more loans with our
Credit Reporting Services, Mortgage
Processing Services, and Appraisal
Management Services.
Providing our Clients with Platinum-
Level World-Class Service is our
priority.
Platinum Credit Services, Inc. (PCS)
is more than just credit, with a full
scope of services for mortgage
lenders. At PCS, we pride ourselves
on providing the highest level of re-
spect and deserving gratitude to
our clients.
At PCS you will receive, knowledge-
able, courteous service from our staff
of skilled credit professionals. Our
combined management experience
is greater than 30 years of expertise
in the mortgage servicing industry. In
addition, PCS offers competitive pric-
ing and believes in providing the
client personal attention, in all as-
pects of service.
Learn more about our services by
calling, Lorenzo Pugliano, President
and CEO at 631-299-2084.
www.platinumcreditservices.com
The program will be offered to quali-
fied Wells Fargo and Wachovia second
lien mortgage customers who have
completed their HAMP modifications
on their first mortgage.
The Second-Lien Modification
Program offers struggling homeowners
with yet another valuable option for
reducing payments so they can remain
in their homes, said Kevin Moss, execu-
tive vice president of Wells Fargos
Home Equity Group. This program is an
important component of joint industry
and government efforts to bring further
stability to the housing market.
Wells Fargo has already implement-
ed a variety of its own programs to
assist its home equity customers. Since
last year, the companys Home Equity
Group has participated in Wells Fargo-
sponsored home preservation events in
Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Phoenix
and St. Paul to provide thousands of
customers the opportunity to talk face-
to-face about their payment challenges.
Three more events will be held in the
first half of this year in Los Angeles,
Oakland and Miami.
Over the past two years, Wells Fargo
has proactively reached out to its cus-
tomers through telephone calls, mail
and other means to discuss potential
assistance options. In addition, the
company added more than 2,000 team
members to its staff to focus on helping
its customers who may be struggling to
make their home equity payments.
As a result of all of these efforts, as of
the end of February 2010, Wells Fargo
provided assistance to more than
180,000 second lien mortgage customers
through various programs, including
loan modifications and subordinations,
and more than a half million first mort-
gage customers with first lien modifica-
tions. This included 139,065 active trial
and completed first-lien HAMP modifica-
tions. Given the HAMP focus on afford-
ability and documentation, Wells Fargo
expects loans modified under the new
second-lien program to have a similar
quality and performance to those made
under its own internal programs.
With so many families challenged
by current economic conditions, Wells
Fargo remains committed to providing
help to customers who qualify for
HAMP and those who dont, Moss said.
This new program will help expedite
our efforts and likely increase the num-
ber of borrowers we can assist through
loan modifications, which will benefit
our customers, our communities and
our shareholders.
Borrowers with second lien mort-
gages who qualify for a first-lien HAMP
should contact their first-mortgage
providers to determine if they are eligi-
ble for the new federal program.
Servicers participating in the program
are required to contact all first-lien
HAMP customers with second-lien
mortgages to make them aware of the
new payment relief option.
For more information, visit www.wells-
fargo.com.
MBA study on mortgage
bankers finds production
profits held steady in Q4 09
Independent mort-
gage bankers and
their subsidiaries
made an average
profit of $890 on
each loan they originated in the fourth
quarter of 2009, down from $902 per
loan in the third quarter of 2009, but up
from $296 in the fourth quarter of 2008,
according to the Mortgage Bankers
Association (MBA).
Production profits remained favor-
able in the fourth quarter because of
strong servicing rights valuations and
secondary marketing gains, said Marina
Walsh, MBAs associate vice president of
industry analysis. However, provision
expense for repurchase demands may
weaken profitability in upcoming quar-
ters. We saw the expense provision dou-
ble to over six basis points from the
fourth quarter of 2008.
Among the principal findings of
MBAs Quarterly Mortgage Bankers
Performance Report are:
O Seventy-six percent of the firms in the
study posted pre-tax net financial profits
in the fourth quarter 2009, compared to
82 percent in the third quarter 2009.
O The average production volume for
each firm was $216.5 million in the
fourth quarter 2009, compared to
$189.6 million in the third quarter
2009.
O The share of refinancings to total
originations for this sample was rel-
atively constant at 45 percent in the
fourth quarter 2009, compared to 44
percent in the third quarter 2009.
O The average pull-through (the num-
ber of closings divided by the num-
ber of loan applications) was rela-
tively constant at 73 percent in the
fourth quarter 2009 from 72 percent
in the third quarter 2009.
O The net cost to originate rose to
$2,345 per loan in the fourth quar-
ter 2009, from $1,950 per loan in
the third quarter 2009. The net cost
to originate includes all production
operating expenses and commis-
sions minus all fee income, but
excludes secondary marketing gains,
capitalized servicing, servicing
released premiums and warehouse
interest spread.
O Production operating expenses
commissions, compensation, occu-
pancy and equipment, and other
production expenses and corporate
allocationsrose to $4,402 per loan
in the fourth quarter 2009 com-
pared to $4,376 per loan in the third
quarter 2009.
O Net warehousing income, which rep-
resents the net interest spread
between the mortgage rate on a
loan and the interest paid on a
warehouse line of credit, was almost
constant at 6.26 basis points in the
continued on page 15
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Most of the stories are similar your
average American family with two work-
ing parents and two to three children,
living in a modest home are beginning
to feel the crush of economic hardship
firsthand through the
threat of losing their
home. The ripple effect
of high unemployment
rates in struggling to sur-
vive as a homeowner in
the 21st century has
wreaked havoc on the
nation, thrusting foreclo-
sure and bankruptcy
rates into record high
territories.
Foreclosure interven-
tion by financial institu-
tions and governmental
mediation through pro-
grams such as the Home
Affordable Modification
Program (HAMP), has
been a bumpy road for many. Some
attribute it to the big banks, often stub-
born in nature in providing a home-
owner with foreclosure relief as they
deal with the training and implementa-
tion of their loan modification pro-
grams, as other chalk the issues up to
bureaucratic red tape that is binding
the governments efforts to step in and
help the struggling U.S. homeowner. No
matter where the finger is pointed, the
problem remains scores of
Americans each day are slowly sinking
under the weight of wage loss and
mounting expenses with the inevitabil-
ity of eventually losing their home.
That is where the HOPE NOW Alliance
is trying to make a difference. HOPE
NOW is an alliance between counselors,
mortgage servicers, investors and other
mortgage market participants with the
collective goal of maximizing outreach
efforts to homeowners in distress to
help them stay in their homes. HOPE
NOWs nearly 70 member companies
recognize that by working together to
stamp out the foreclosure crisis, they
will be a more effective force than by
working solo.
HOPE NOW, along with co-sponsors
the Making Home Affordable Program
and NeighborWorks America, have
organized a number of Help for
Homeowners Community Events on
their road show that bring the banks
and servicers together, face-to-face,
with homeowners looking for solutions
to their problems. The common com-
plaint from a customer seeking a modi-
fication is the chain of voicemails and
departments they have to deal with and
the mountain of paperwork required in
order to get the modification process
started.
Locations for these outreach events
are determined by the amount of
HAMP activity in a particular region,
and then, an easily accessible and cen-
tralized location is selected to house
the event, said Brad Dwin, director of
communications for the HOPE NOW
Alliance.
Face-to-face contact and personal
interaction is important in a situation as
delicate as this, said one homeowner at
a recent New York Help for
Homeowners event. We really got
nowhere dealing with our bank by the
phone, at least we can come here today
and deal with a live person and not just
leave an endless number of voicemails.
Since 2008, HOPE NOW has hosted
60-plus homeownership outreach
events, assisting approximately 59,000
families in the process.
When an event is on the
horizon, HOPE NOW noti-
fies area lenders and
banks. In turn, the banks
and lenders send out
mailings to their cus-
tomers to notify them of
the opportunity to meet
one-on-one with a trained
housing counselor at the
Help for Homeowners
Community Event. If a
customers lending insti-
tution happens to not be
on hand for the event,
consumers are paired up
with non-profit housing
counselors who assist the
homeowner through their situation.
Homeowners are given a checklist of
paperwork to bring in order to see if
they qualify for HAMP or other alterna-
tives from their lender.
The personal contact a con-
sumer has with a housing coun-
selor is a plus, said Alvina
McHale, director of communica-
tions and marketing for the U.S.
Department of the Treasury.
These events are a win-win situ-
ation for all involved as the bor-
rower can discuss their situation
directly with their financial insti-
tution.
At day one of a Help for
Homeowners Community Event, held
in late April on Long Island, N.Y. in
Uniondale at the Nassau Veterans
Memorial Coliseum, 646 cases were
heard in a four-hour span by the
lenders on hand. The doors for the
event opened at 1:00 p.m., with
many lining up as early as 6:00 a.m. in order
to meet with their lender. On hand for this
particular New York event were: American
Home Mortgage Servicing Inc., Aurora Loan
Servicing, Bank of America/Countrywide,
Carrington, Chase/Washington Mutual, Citi,
GMAC/Homecomings, Home Loan Servicing
(HLS), HSBC, Litton Loan Servicing, Ocwen, One
West Bank/IndyMac, PNC Mortgage/National
City, Saxon, Select Portfolio Servicing and Wells
Fargo/Wachovia who sent along approved
counselors to reach out to their customers.
There are a lot of borrowers out there
who are confused about the whole process
and need our help, said Jamie Holland,
compliance manager with Ocwen.
Not all homeowners are guaranteed
a home-saving conclusion, and that too
was the case at the New York event. For
every success story, whether it be qual-
ifying for a loan modification or obtain-
ing a temporary forbearance, there
were stories with unhappy endings as it
was either too late to save a consumers
home and the realization of a short
sale, deed-in-lieu or foreclosure started
to become a reality.
A man by the name of Bob was one
such success story. He came to the event
seeking a reduction in his monthly
mortgage payments which stood in the
$2,400 range. The loss of his wifes job
due to a layoff made the familys finan-
cials an issue and Bob was no longer
able to keep up with payments. He visit-
Alvina McHale, director of communications
and marketing for the U.S. Department of
the Treasury, with Jamie Holland, compli-
ance manager with Ocwen, at the New York
Help for Homeowners Community Event
By Eric C. Peck
Lenders set up shop at Nassau Coliseum to meet one-on-one with
homeowners
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much bigger and more important issue
than just providing industry members
with jobs.
There is plenty of room to discuss the
shortcomings of appraisals and appraisers.
That being said, I do not believe that there
are many appraisers out there intent upon
killing an otherwise healthy loan package
with a bad appraisal. The problems we cur-
rently face are too few qualified borrowers
and declining home values. This cannot be
corrected with appraisal legislation, rule
changing or loosening up of the standards.
Such action would only make things worse
in the long run.
This begs the question: Is there a bet-
ter way to select appraisers? I suggest
that there very well may be. Whatever it
is, it should not include the lender mak-
ing the loan, selecting the appraiser,
ordering the appraisal and paying the
appraiser. When the lender is really not
lending his or her own money, there is
just too much temptation for the undue
influence of appraisers.
It is my suggestion that a bank, fund-
ing a loan, give the customer at least two
options for the selection of a manage-
ment company to acquire an appraisal
for their property. At least one of these
must come from an independent man-
agement company. Each would include
all-inclusive prices, which would be the
dollar amount charged by the company
providing the appraisal service, including
the management of the process. There
would be no other appraisal fees charged
to the customer. Banks, opting to engage
in the process of offering their clients
appraisals, would be required to set up
management companies and register in
all states, as well as at the federal level, if
and when required of other AMCs. Said
another way bank-owned AMCs would
be required to follow the same rules as all
other management companies.
Would this be perfect? Probably not,
but I believe that it would foster compe-
tition, while giving the borrower at least
a bit of say-so in the appraisal process.
It would go a long way toward providing
transparency and would help to remove
questions as to the ethics of the bank in
the transaction. Banks would undoubt-
edly benefit from the increased cus-
tomer satisfaction and could focus
more on what they do best, make loans.
Charlie W. Elliott Jr., MAI, SRA, is president
of Elliott & Company Appraisers, a nation-
al real estate appraisal company. He can
be reached at (800) 854-5889, e-mail char-
lie@elliottco.com or visit his companys
Web site, www.appraisalsanywhere.com.
value nation continued from page 10
ed the event and met with his lender
and walked away with a trial modifica-
tion and a reduction of $700 a month
off each mortgage payment, thus set-
ting his mind at ease and saving his
home became a reality.
This is a dog and pony show, said
one attorney on hand for the event.
The banks are putting on a really good
show here by showing up and giving
the impression they are doing the right
thing. I feel they can do so much
more.
Brian and Laura, a middle-class Long
Island couple, came to the event seek-
ing to meet a counselor in person after
dealing unsuccessfully over the phone
for months trying to obtain a loan mod-
ification. Brians job cut back on his
overtime hours, thus impacting their
ability to meet their monthly mortgage
commitment. The couple showed up
two hours in advance of the doors
opening, taking the day off from work
and hiring a babysitter. Their end result,
the same as on the phone, dead ends
and no resolution.
No one seems to know what is going
on or have a clue about our situation,
said Brian. I thought it would be good to
come on down, meet with a human and
not play phone tag. I wanted immediate
results, but got what seems to have been
a wasted day. In the end, we were
deemed ineligible for a modification and
were left with a great deal of questions
about the future of our home.
No matter the end result, HOPE NOW,
its alliance partnersMaking Home
Affordable Program and NeighborWorks
Americaand their lender supporters are
putting forth a strong concerted effort to
save Americas homeowners. Their overall
goal is to keep the American dream of
homeownership alive and well, even in
this current economic downturn.
The check-in desk at the April Help for Homeowners Community Event at
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y.
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At United Northern, we give you the freedom to originate and succeed with our winning team.
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Ongoing training and consultation with top industry executives
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Mortgages: Get the Facts Before
Cashing in on Your Homes Equity, a
new business alert to help housing
counselors spot and report potentially
deceptive claims, and presentations to
reverse mortgage industry groups.
FTC staff specifically supports the
FFIECs efforts to advise lenders of the
importance of not making deceptive
claims for reverse mortgages and to
provide them with concrete guidance
as to the circumstances under which
claims may be deceptive in violation
of Section 5 of the FTC Act. The com-
ments also encourage reverse mort-
gage lenders and brokers under the
FTCs jurisdiction to review and con-
sider the proposed guidances advice
and examples relating to deceptive
claims. The comments further note
the value of testing disclosures and
other measures in certain circum-
stances to confirm that they are clear
and useful and do not create unin-
tended consequences.
For more information, visit www.ftc.gov.
HUD brings on
Michaelson, Connor
& Boul as mortgagee
compliance manager
The U.S. Department
of Housing & Urban
Development (HUD)
has announced the
agency has contracted Michaelson,
Connor & Boul Inc. (MCB) of Huntington
Beach, Calif. to serve as its mortgagee
compliance manager. MCB will be
responsible for ensuring that Federal
Housing Administration (FHA)-approved
lenders and loan servicers convey fore-
closed properties to the FHA in accept-
able condition.
MCB will establish a central office
for lender compliance oversight in
Oklahoma City, Okla., which is project-
ed to create 75-100 new professional
jobs. HUDs National Servicing Center
(NSC) in Oklahoma City will be respon-
sible for the direct oversight of the
new compliance manager contract.
This new contract is part of FHAs
continuing effort to reduce risk,
increase return, and improve efficiency
in the resale of its inventory of fore-
closed property, said HUD Deputy
Assistant Secretary Vicki Bott. It is crit-
ically important that FHA recaptures as
much of our claims through the even-
tual sale of these properties and this
compliance management firm will help
us do that.
The contract is awarded under FHAs
Management and Marketing (M&M) III
disposition structure. Under M&M III,
the process of conveying foreclosed
properties to FHA has been centralized
and streamlined in order to simplify
the process for FHAs lenders and ser-
vicers, as well as to improve communi-
fourth quarter 2009, compared to
6.67 basis points in the third quar-
ter 2009.
MBAs Quarterly Mortgage Bankers
Performance Report offers a variety of
performance measures on the mort-
gage banking industry and is intended
as a financial and operational bench-
mark for independent mortgage com-
panies, bank subsidiaries and other
non-depository institutions. Seventy-
two percent of the 285 companies that
reported production data for this
report were independent companies.
For more information, visit www.mort-
gagebankers.org.
FTC files comments
with FFIEC on reverse
mortgage guidance
The Federal Trade
Commission (FTC)
has filed comments
with the Federal
Financial Institutions
Examination Council
(FFIEC) supporting a
measure designed to protect consumers
from deceptive claims and to help them
make better-informed decisions about
whether to obtain a reverse mortgage. A
reverse mortgage is a home-secured loan
that becomes due when the home-
owner moves, sells the home, dies or
fails to meet loan terms such as paying
property tax or homeowners insur-
ance. Although reverse mortgages
have assisted many elderly consumers
in drawing on the equity in their
homes, some consumers may not fully
understand these complex products or
may be deceived by advertising claims
made about them.
In December 2009, the FFIEC issued
proposed guidance for its members on
how to deal with reverse mortgages.
FFIEC members include the federal
banking agenciesOffice of the
Comptroller of the Currency (OCC),
Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System, Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Office of
Thrift Supervision (OTS), National
Credit Union Administration (NCUA)
and the State Liaison Committee,
which includes representatives from
the Conference of State Bank
Supervisors (CSBS), American Council of
State Savings Supervisors (ACSSS), and
National Association of State Credit
Union Supervisors (NASCUS).
The comments, prepared by the
staff of the FTCs Bureaus of Consumer
Protection and Economics and its
Office of Policy Planning, describe FTC
work in this area, including forming a
federal-state working group to
strengthen law enforcement efforts
against illegal practices. The comments
also note FTC consumer and business
education efforts, such as including a
revised consumer brochure, Reverse
news flash continued from page 11
continued on page 20
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OFFERS
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New FHA Rule: All Brokers Now
Have Access to FHA Loans
On Sept. 18, 2009, David H. Stevens,
Commissioner of the Federal Housing
Administration (FHA), made an
announcement in a press release. This
announcement was that a proposed
rule (published in the Federal Register)
would not require mortgage brokers to
get FHA approval in order to have
access to FHA programs. This rule, in
fact, became final on April 20, 2010,
when the rule was published in the
Federal Register.
This provides a wonderful opportu-
nity for brokers who were previously
unable to meet net worth requirements
allowing FHA approval. However, the
other side of this rule is that brokers
will need to be sponsored by an FHA-
approved lender and they must meet
the FHA lenders requirements for being
sponsored.
Now the big question is: How diffi-
cult will the FHA lenders make it for the
brokers? Likely, by the printing of this
article, many lenders will have already
established their broker guidelines for
doing FHA loans. In reality, why is doing
a loan that will be sold to Ginnie Mae
any different than a Fannie Mae or
Freddie Mac loan? It shouldnt take a
lot of effort on the part of FHA lenders
to create internal policies that establish
some guidelines allowing brokers to do
FHA loans with them. FHA lenders
already have very strict reporting and
administrative requirements in place
for the FHA-approved brokers they cur-
rently sponsor. Thus, FHA feels the tran-
sition will not present a big challenge to
existing FHA lenders.
What about currently approved FHA
brokers? The rule states that currently
approved FHA lenders will do business
as usual through the rest of 2010, and
starting on Jan. 1, 2011, mortgage bro-
kers will no longer be required to sub-
mit audited financials to maintain their
access to FHA loans. Many brokers are
ecstatic about this change and are excit-
ed about the fact they wont have to
spend thousands of dollars on the
audits. I spoke with HUD directly on the
question of whether or not currently
approved FHA brokers will have to sub-
mit audited financials in 2010, and was
told that if you are a broker that is in
good standing with FHA, you will not be
required to submit audited financial,
but will have to re-certify through FHA
Connection and pay the fee.
This leads to another question: What
if an FHA-approved broker wants to get
approved now as an FHA lender? The
answer is that they will have to meet a
certain net worth requirement, or NWR.
For 2010 and 2011, smaller companies
(as defined by the Small Business
Administration [SBA]) will need
$500,000 in net worth, and larger com-
panies will need a minimum of $1 mil-
lion in net worth. In all cases, 20 per-
cent of the net worth must be in the
form of liquid assets. In 2013 and
beyond, all companies applying for FHA
approval will be required to have a
minimum net worth of $1 million, 20
percent of which must be liquid assets.
Given this new NWR, many compa-
nies will be faced with a tough decision.
The companies that are currently FHA-
approved will have to decide if they
want to meet and maintain the NWR,
and the companies that want to get
FHA approval will have to decide if they
also want to come up with the cash
meet the new NWR. Because FHA is
such an important loan product to have
today and many loan officers need it to
survive, we have seen a national trend
of consolidation of smaller broker
offices into larger companies just to
enable access to FHA. It could be that
this rule will reverse that trend. If so,
we may see an increase in smaller bro-
ker offices, especially as housing sales
improve.
If you are a broker who has hired a
lot of talented originators and/or bro-
kers over the past several years, you
need to look seriously at why the tal-
Be prepared to give these talented
originators a good reason to stay
or be prepared for attrition,
because when the market gets hot,
talented people are always looking
for ways to improve their lot.
continued on page 22
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Government support of housing
recovery is not ending. The Obama
Administration recently announced a
new initiative to refinance and modify
underwater mortgages with incentives
to investors to pare down principal. The
program includes mortgage payment
aid for those who are unemployed. Also,
grants were announced to five more
states hit hardest by the crisis.
Here is an interesting note. The
Congressional Budget Office recently
announced that the TARP program,
which was supposed to cost the govern-
ment $700 billion, is now estimated to
cost only 16 percent of that total, or
$109 billion. How times have changed.
We now think of $100 billion as a bar-
gain!
What is the point of all this? With the
jobs picture turning positive, the mar-
kets are turning back to normal. This
means that the government has to facil-
itate this process. Do not think by any
means that we are out of the woods just
yet. There are a ton of foreclosures to
come, and if a recovery means higher
rates and oil prices, it will be an even
slower recovery than expected. The Fed
has indicated that they are prepared to
keep rates low because of these facts,
and if the recovery continues, expect
more speculation regarding when and
how the Fed will increase rates. In the
meantime, the Fed has also told
Congress that they are ready to step in
and reintroduce measures when and if
necessary.
Now we come back to the ques-
tion, how do all of these factors
affect originations? For one, the rate
volatility we warned about has
become a reality. That means that
originators must keep on top of the
markets at all times. Even when you
are in loan application as you are fill-
ing out the rate on the Good Faith
Estimate (GFE).
Second, rising rates are not ever
pleasant. However, if these rising
rates are due to a recovery in which
people start finding jobs, it will be a
positive tradeoff. That is why the pos-
itive employment report for March
was so important. We have another
eight million jobs to go before we
recover the jobs lost during the reces-
sion. That is a long road to travel. A
long-term recovery only happens
when people are employed and can
afford to keep their homes in the long
run. We will accept higher rates that
are still historically low if people are
going back to work.
Dave Hershman is a leading author for the
mortgage industry with eight books and sev-
eral hundred articles to his credit. He is also
head of OriginationPro Mortgage School
and a top industry speaker. Daves Certified
Mortgage Advisor Program can be found at
www.webinars.originationpro.com. If you
would like to stay ahead of what is happen-
ing in the markets, visit ratelink.origination-
pro.com for a free trial or e-mail
success@hershmangroup.com.
Okay, that is a bad rhyme. But the truth
is, we might as well be rubbing the bot-
tle with the genie to see what is coming
next. We have talked about this for
months. The Federal Reserve Board has
finally reached the date in which they
are no longer purchasing Mortgage-
Backed Securities (MBS). The devasta-
tion of the secondary market for home
loans was one of the major effects of
the financial meltdown which occurred
over a year ago. The Fed took many
definitive actions to keep rates down
while the government took many other
actions to right the financial ship. Here
are some of these actions:
O The Fed lowering benchmark short-
term rates to close to zero.
O The Fed purchasing hundreds of bil-
lions of dollars in Treasury securi-
ties.
O The Fed purchasing hundreds of bil-
lions of dollar in MBS.
O The Fed providing significant liquid-
ity to the system.
O Congress passing two versions of the
Homebuyer Tax Credit.
O Congress increasing high-end loan
limits on conforming and govern-
ment loans.
O Congress bailing out the banks with
an influx of Troubled Asset Relief
Program (TARP) funding.
O Not to mention several tax rebates,
foreclosure prevention programs,
unemployment aid, bailing out the
car companies and more.
Now, the Fed is ready to see if the
private markets will pick up the slack
and allow home loans to be originated
and sold on the open markets at a price
that will not halt the economic recov-
ery, particularly in the real estate sec-
tor. Is this a non-event at this point?
Note that rates had already increased
moderately in the weeks before the
Feds deadline of March 31. There have
been many explanations for this
increase, including tepid response to
government bond auctions. However, it
is entirely possible that the tepid
response was due to anticipation of this
important date.
Now, speculation moves to another
level as it appears we will ponder as to
whether rates will continue to rise and
whether the Fed will start selling some
of the hundreds of billions of dollars in
bonds they currently own. Here is a
quote from a recent article from The
New York Times:
No one expects the Fed to unload its
holdings anytime soon, which would be
reckless given the housing markets
fragility and the countrys high unem-
ployment. But since the Fed now owns
about 25 percent of the outstanding
stock of bonds, any talk about actually
selling should be a cause for greater con-
cern than the Fed simply ending further
purchases.
What will happen? No one actually
knows. Rub-a-dub-dub.
This is not the only program which is
ending. The tax credit is schedule to
end at the end of April. Many had
expected an automatic extension. As a
matter of fact, homebuyers seem to be
acting like this extension was a given.
From CNN/Money:
There is little sentiment for continuing
this program, especially because many
consider the latest iterations results to
be disappointing. Even the Senates
biggest proponent of the homebuyer tax
credit, Johnny Isakson (R-GA) is ready to
let it end. He has no plans to introduce
legislation to extend the credit, said
Isaksons spokeswoman. Part of the
benefit of the tax credit was the urgency
its sun-setting generated. Thus at the
time of printing the tax credit is up in
the air.
Rub-a-Dub-Dub:
The Fed Pulls the Plug
The Congressional Budget Office
recently announced that the TARP
program, which was supposed to
cost the government $700 billion, is
now estimated to cost only 16 per-
cent of that total, or $109 billion.
How times have changed. We now
think of $100 billion as a bargain!
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resources, training, technology, accounting, legal, in-house funding,
and underwriting.
As an Inlanta partner, youll function as a true mortgage banker
without concerns about warehouse facilities. If youd like to grow with
us, Id like to talk to you. Please call me at 262-513-9853 or email
partner@inlanta.com.
W229 N1433 Westwood Drive, Suite 105 | Waukesha, WI 53186 | www.inlanta.com
JEAN BADCIONG
Chief Operating Ofcer
Grow with us
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collar exemptions. The following table provides a brief synopsis, with salary
requirements, of those revisions:
4
In an Administrators Interpretation (Interpretation),
1
issued March 24, 2010, the
U. S. Department of Labor (DOL) determined that employees who perform the typ-
ical duties of a mortgage loan officer have a primary duty of making sales for their
employers and, therefore, do not qualify as bona fide administrative employees
exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (Act).
2
Accordingly, mortgage loan officers are subject to minimum wage and over-
time requirements.
Administrators Interpretation
The Interpretation applies to employees who:
O Spend the majority of their time working inside their employers place of busi-
ness, including employees who work in offices located in their homes, rather
than mortgage loan officers who are customarily and regularly engaged away
from their employers place of business; and
O Do not spend the majority of their time engaging in cold-calling, contacting
potential customers who have not in some manner expressed an interest in
obtaining information about a mortgage loan.
By issuing this Interpretation, the DOL has now rejected its own Sept. 8, 2006
Wage and Hour Opinion Letter FLSA 2006-31, asserting that its previous position
provided an inappropriately narrow definition of sales as including only cus-
tomer-specific persuasive sales activity (i.e., the time that a mortgage loan officer
spends directly engaged in selling mortgage loan products to customers).
3
Exempt versus non-exempt
The Act identifies two types of employees: non-exempt employees and exempt
employees:
O Non-exempt employees are employees who, based on the duties per-
formed and the manner of compensation, are required to account for time
worked and sick leave, vacation, and other leave on an hourly and fraction-
al hourly basis. The Act requires that these employees be paid overtime at
the premium (time-and-one-half) for actual time worked in excess of 40
hours per week.
O Exempt employees are employees who, based on the duties performed
and the manner of compensation, are exempt from the Acts minimum
wage and overtime provisions. Exempt employees are paid an established
monthly or annual salary and are expected to fulfill the duties of their
positions regardless of the hours worked. They do not receive premium
overtime, straight overtime or compensatory time for working more than
40 hours in a work week.
To be considered exempt from the Acts requirements, employees must
meet two tests: the Salary Basis Test and the Duties Test. The Act has a num-
ber of white collar exemptions from overtime and minimum wage. Changes
made to the Act in August 2004 modified these tests, compelling an examina-
tion of how to classify and pay mortgage loan officers. Eligibility for these
exemptions is based on the primary duties of their job functions and their
weekly salary.
Table of certain white collar exemptions
The August 2004 revisions to the Act elucidated the requirements for certain white
Mortgage Loan Officers Lose
Administrative Exemption
Executive employees
Pre-August 04 rule Beginning August 04
Minimum
compensation
Duties
required
$250 qualified weekly salary
Primary duty consists of
management of enterprise
or recognized department
or subdivision thereof; and
Customarily and regular-
ly directs work of two or
more other employees.
$455 qualified weekly salary
Pre-August 04 rule Beginning August 04
Minimum
compensation
$250 qualified weekly salary $455 qualified weekly salary
Pre-August 04 rule Beginning August 04
Minimum
compensation
None Same
Same
Same
Authority to hire/fire other
employees (or suggestions
about hiring/firing/promo-
tion/other status changes
given particular weight).
Duties
required
Primary duty consists of
performing office or non-
manual work directly relat-
ed to management poli-
cies or general business
operations of the employ-
er or the employers cus-
tomers; and
Includes work requiring
exercising discretion and
independent judgment.
Same
Primary duty includes the
exercise of discretion and
independent judgment
with respect to matters of
significance.
Duties
required
Employed for the purpose
of, and customarily and
regularly engaged away
from the employers place
of business in, making
sales; or in obtaining orders
or contracts for services or
for the use of facilities; and
Devotes no more than 20
percent of hours worked
by nonexempt employees
to activities not incidental
to and in conjunction
with employees own out-
side sales or solicitations.
Primary duty of making
sales, or obtaining orders
or contracts for services or
use of facilities; and
Customarily and regularly
engaged away from the
employers place of busi-
ness.
Pre-August 04 rule Beginning August 04
Minimum
compensation
No such exemption $100,000/year (including min-
imum weekly salary of $455)
Duties
required
No such exemption Non-manual or office work
Customarily and regularly per-
forms one or more exempt
duties or responsibilities of an
executive, administrative or
professional employee.
Administrative employees
Outside sales employees
Highly compensated employees
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Contact one of our Regional Managers in your area
TX, OK, LA: David Walden 1-214-878-6300 dwalden@iservelending.com
Southeast & East Coast: Ken Michael 1-931-222-8023 kmichael@iservelending.com
CA, OR, WA, NV: Allen Friedman 1-415-298-2500 afriedman@iservelending.com
UT, CO, ID, WY, MT: Tony Moore 1-801-824-7243 tmoore@iservelending.com
KEY #1
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Support for all accounting, human resources,
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Exemption test
Under the Interpretation, to fall within the meaning of an employee employed in
a bona fide administrative capacity (therefore, exempt) an employees job duties
and compensation must meet all of the following tests:
1. The employee must be compensated on a salary or fee basis as defined in the
regulations at a rate not less than $455 per week;
2. The employees primary duty must be the performance of office or non-manu-
al work directly related to the management or general business operations of the
employer or the employers customers; and
3. The employees primary duty must include the exercise of discretion and inde-
pendent judgment with respect to matters of significance.
The DOL, contending that the second test (listed above) does not apply to mort-
gage loan officers, argues that the typical, primary duty of the mortgage loan offi-
cer is sales, not office or non-manual work directly related to the management or
general business operations of their employer or their employers customers.
Mortgage loan officer is a salesperson
Although mortgage loan officers compile and analyze potential customers finan-
cial data, they do so because doing so is necessary to evaluate the customers qual-
ifications for a loan (in order to consummate a sale); that is, the DOLs position is
that mortgage loan officers are not analyzing the customers information to pro-
vide advice to the customer, which the customer could take and use elsewhere,
but performing screening for the benefit of the employer, rather than servicing
for the benefit of the customer.
In determining whether an employees primary duty is making sales, the DOLs
view is that work performed incidental to sales should also be considered sales work.
An employee who performs the typical duties of a mortgage loan officer, as
defined by the Department, does not qualify for exempt status as bona fide
administrative employees. In short, the Interpretations position is that a mort-
gage loan officers primary duty is sales and not the management or general busi-
ness operation of the employer.
Salary arrangements
In structuring salary arrangements to meet the $455/week, the issue of commis-
sions and draws must be considered.
5
The general rule is that an exempt employ-
ee may be paid solely on a commission basis if the payments for each work week
are sufficient to meet the salary basis requirement for that work week. A draw may
not reduce an employees earning to below the salary basis requirement for hours
worked. Additionally, commissions may not be used for weeks other than when
earned as a means of making up amounts in a different week where commission
earnings are insufficient to meet the statutory amount.
The Act permits an agreement between an employer and employee which pro-
vides that the employee will receive the statutory amount for all hours worked
along with any additional amount by which commissions may exceed the statuto-
ry amount required. It appears that a monthly commission period may be utilized;
however, the computation and recording of hours must be on a work week basis.
Submit your questions
Do you have a regulatory compliance issue that youd like to see addressed in the
Regulatory Compliance Outlook Column? If so, e-mail your issue or concern to
Jonathan Foxx at jfoxx@lenderscompliancegroup.com.
Jonathan Foxx, former chief compliance officer for two of the countrys top publicly-
traded residential mortgage loan originators, is the president and managing director
of Lenders Compliance Group, a mortgage risk management firm devoted to provid-
ing regulatory compliance advice and counsel to the mortgage industry. He may be
contacted at (516) 442-3456 or by e-mail at jfoxx@lenderscompliancegroup.com.
Footnotes
1Administrators Interpretation 2010-1, Department of Labor. (This is the first
Administrators Interpretation ever issued by the DOL.)
2See: 29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1).
3The withdrawn opinion letter is Opinion Letter FLSA 2006-31. (Also withdrawn
was a previously supporting interpretation Opinion Letter: FLSA 2001 WL 1558764.)
4The analysis of this article pertains to federal law. State law and licensing
requirements must also be considered in determining how to classify employees.
In addition, the Federal Reserve Board is considering a proposal to eliminate com-
pensation based on the terms of the loan.
5A mortgage loan officer who cannot satisfy the administrative exemption may
still satisfy the highly compensated employee exemption by customarily and reg-
ularly performing at least one of the exempt responsibilities associated with the
three exemption criteria for that category.
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were committed
to brokers!
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has opened an investigation into
Making Home Affordable, the federal
foreclosure prevention program. As part
of the Committees investigation, NCRC
released a survey of homeowner experi-
ences in the loan modification process,
conducted by over 29 housing counsel-
ing organizations affiliated with the
organization.
Weve surveyed housing counselors
from the front lines of the foreclosure
crisis, and they tell us that the battle is
being lost. said John Taylor, president
and chief executive officer of the NCRC.
While this administration has been
more proactive than the last, Making
Home Affordable is simply failing to
make enough of a difference relative to
the size of the problem. Its not for lack
of good ideas, including more aggres-
sive principal reductions that this crisis
has been allowed to continue mostly
unabated. The end result, if we dont
get ahead of this problem now, is the
ongoing loss of wealth from Americas
communities.
NCRCs HAMP Mortgage Modification
Survey provides alarming insight into the
experience of homeowners going
through the federal Home Affordable
Modification Program (HAMP). The sur-
vey was administered to distressed
homeowners seeking assistance from
NCRCs Housing Counseling Network. The
survey documents performance and pro-
grammatic issues, issues of fairness and
equity, and pragmatic recommendations
to improve upon the HAMP program.
Among survey respondents, some
key trends include:
O Loan servicers foreclose on delin-
quent black or African-American
borrowers more quickly than White
or Hispanic borrowers. Additionally,
White HAMP eligible borrowers are
almost 50 percent more likely to
receive a modification than African-
American or Latino borrowers.
O The majority of loan modifications
involve an interest rate reduction,
while principal reductions were
scarce.
O Homeowners with foreclosure pend-
ing were less likely to receive a mod-
ification than those current on their
payments. Half of the delinquent
survey respondents did not receive a
modification, compared to 25 per-
cent of those borrowers who were
current on their mortgage.
For more information, visit www.ncrc.org.
OCC and OTS release
Mortgage Metrics Report
for Q4 of 2009
Performance on
home mortgages
serviced by the
largest national
banks and feder-
ally regulated thrifts declined for the
seventh consecutive quarter in the
fourth quarter of 2009, though home
foreclosures slowed and new home
retention actions continued strong,
according to a report released by the
Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency (OCC) and the Office of Thrift
Supervision (OTS).
The OCC and OTS Mortgage Metrics
Report for the Fourth Quarter 2009
showed the overall percentage of cur-
rent and performing mortgages fell to
86.4 percent at the end of 2009, driven
by an increase in mortgages that were
90 or more days past due. Prime mort-
gages, which make up two-thirds of the
mortgages in the portfolio, continued
to have the greatest increases in delin-
quency.
Overall, servicers implemented more
than 594,000 new home retention
actions during the quarter, including
259,410 new trial plans initiated under
the Home Affordable Modification
Program (HAMP) and 21,316 existing
trial plans converted to permanent
HAMP modifications. The actions also
included 102,102 loan modifications,
94,667 trial plans, and 116,600 pay-
ment plans for borrowers who did not
qualify for HAMP.
Although the number of new home
retention actions was more than twice
the number of new modifications dur-
ing the same quarter a year ago, it
dropped 12.4 percent from the third
quarter. Servicers reported that the
fourth quarter decline followed a surge
cation and the dissemination of pro-
gram guidance and requirements.
As the largest seller of real estate in
the country, HUD has been outsourcing
the disposition of its foreclosed FHA
inventory under the M&M contracting
process since 1999. After conducting
extensive research into market-based
best practices, HUD has developed its
new M&M III disposition structure to
streamline its operations, capitalize on
the expertise of potential vendors and
provide flexibility in a changing envi-
ronment.
Under M&M III, lenders and loan
servicers seeking to convey foreclosed
properties to FHA will find a more effi-
cient and less complex process than
under previous M&M contracts.
Michaelson, Connor & Boul, Inc will
serve as the sole entity responsible for
mortgagee compliance.
For more information, visit
www.hud.gov or www.mcbreo.com.
NCRC study finds troubling
trends with loan mods
The National Community Reinvestment
Coalition (NCRC) recently testified
before the House Oversight and
Government Reform Committee, which
news flash continued from page 15
continued on page 23
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Thursday, June 24, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
AAMB welcomes NAMB to beautiful Phoenix!
Come see the new NAMB President and the new
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fha insider continued from page 16
ent would want to stay with you. Be
prepared to give these talented origi-
nators a good reason to stay or be pre-
pared for attrition, because when the
market gets hot, talented people are
always looking for ways to improve
their lot. Now, when the market isnt
booming, is the time to start thinking
about these things.
Some brokers are scared that they
will not be able to get sponsored by
their lenders to do FHA loans. It pays
to keep this in mind as I explained
at the NAMB/WEST conference last
December in Las Vegas, we are in an
era of what I call Relationship lend-
ing. This means that good lending
practices rely on and are built on
good relationships. So, the brokers
that have created good relationships
and have delivered quality loans to
their wholesale lenders will be the
ones who will be sponsored by their
lenders to do FHA loans. The brokers
that have not created good relation-
ships and have only shopped their
lenders based on how much they can
profit may find it difficult to get spon-
sored by an FHA-approved lender. If
you are a broker not yet sponsored by
an FHA lender and you need access to
FHA programs, I strongly encourage
you to make some phone calls to your
lenders and find out their guidelines
for sponsoring you to do FHA loans.
Dont sit and wait
Go FHA!
Jeff Mifsud founded Southfield, Mich.-
based Mortgage Seminars LLC in 2004,
has been an FHA originator for 13 years,
is a contributor to LoanToolbox.com and
is a former FHA underwriter. Jeff may be
reached at (877) 342-9100 or e-mail
jeff@mseminars.com.
Visit author Jeff Mifsuds
Web site at http://msemi-
nars.com for tips and infor-
mation on FHA loans and
details from some of the nations top
FHA specialists.
iServe Servicing certified
to participate in HAMP
iServe Servicing Inc.,
a residential ser-
vicer of performing,
sub- perf ormi ng,
non-performing and
bank-owned assets, has announced it
has received certification for immedi-
ate participation in the U.S.
Department of the Treasurys Home
Affordable Modification Program
(HAMP). HAMP, a key component of
the Obama Administrations Making
Home Affordable Program, was estab-
lished to help financially struggling
homeowners avoid foreclosure by
modifying residential loans to a level
that is affordable and sustainable for
borrowers over the long term.
Beginning in 2007, the manage-
ment of iServe Servicing understood
the undeniable need to work with
homeowners to essentially re-under-
write loans and make every effort to
help stabilize their position and pro-
mote long-term viability, said iServe
Chief Executive Officer Richard Cimino.
We have always understood that con-
tinued homeownership, whenever
possible, is an obvious benefit to the
homeowner, but is also a tremendous
advantage for the underlying mort-
gage investor because a successfully
modified and performing loan pres-
ents significantly more value than a
foreclosure. With a team of highly
trained loss mitigators that work a low
caseload and use cutting edge technol-
ogy solutions, we believe we have the
right model that can help homeown-
ers maintain their dignity, support
home values in communities and let
lenders focus on financing future
homeowners.
iServe Servicing has significant loss
mitigation experience in servicing
non-performing, delinquent and sub-
performing residential loans with an
average of 60-plus days delinquency.
continued on page 25
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your initial application fee (normally $295)
Consumers want to work with people
they can trust and believe.
Trust starts by setting higher
standards for the mortgage industry.
institutions, FHA/Ginnie Mae, REITS,
mortgage REITS, investment funds,
and other investors;
O HFF LP for conduits;
O MetLife for life insurance companies;
O PNC Real Estate for Fannie Mae;
O CBRE Capital Markets Inc. for Freddie
Mac;
O TIAA-CREF for pension funds;
O Glacier Real Estate Group for credit
companies; and
O Deutsche Bank Commercial Real
Estate for specialty finance.
By dollar volume, the top five origi-
nators for third parties in 2009 were
Deutsche Bank Commercial Real Estate,
Wells Fargo Bank, PNC Real Estate, CBRE
Capital Markets Inc. and HFF LP.
The MBA study presents a comprehen-
sive set of listings of commercial/multi-
family mortgage originators and the dif-
ferent roles they play. The MBA report,
Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily
Finance FirmsAnnual Origination
Volumes, presents origination volumes in
more than 140 categories, including by
role, by investor group, by property type,
by financing structure type, and by the
location of the originating office.
For more information, visit www.mort-
gagebankers.org.
Your turn
National Mortgage Professional Magazine
invites you to submit any information
on regulatory changes, legislative
updates, human interest stories or any
other newsworthy items pertaining to
the mortgage industry to the atten-
tion of:
NMP News Flash column
Phone #: (516) 409-5555
E-mail:
newsroom@nmpmediacorp.com
Note: Submissions sent via e-mail are
preferred. The deadline for submissions
is the 1st of the month prior to the target
issue.
in new home retention actions in the
second and third quarters of 2009 after
the introduction of HAMP.
More than 82 percent of all modifi-
cations implemented during the quar-
ter reduced principal and interest pay-
ments, and all HAMP modifications
reduced monthly payments. Most of
HAMP modifications decreased bor-
rowers monthly payments by 20 per-
cent or more.
Recent vintages of modifications
that emphasized sustainability through
lower monthly payments performed
better at three and six months after
modification than older vintages.
However, re-default rates remained
high overall, with more than half of all
modifications falling 60 or more days
past due by nine months after modifi-
cation.
Newly initiated foreclosures fell by
more than 15 percent in the fourth
quarter and foreclosures in process
were stable, as mortgages remained
delinquent for longer periods before
entering the foreclosure process and
the servicers evaluated more borrow-
ers for loss mitigation and foreclosure
prevention programs. However, ser-
vicers report that they expect new fore-
closure actions to increase in upcoming
quarters as alternatives to prevent
foreclosure are exhausted and a larger
number of seriously delinquent mort-
gages slip into foreclosure.
Current second liens that stand
behind delinquent or modified first
liens have an elevated risk of default
and loss. The OCC and OTS have
instructed banks and thrifts that hold
such second liens, which are a minori-
ty of all second liens, to hold appropri-
ate loan loss reserves to reflect the ele-
vated risk.
For more information, visit www.occ.gov
and www.ots.gov.
MBA finds Wells Fargo
as top U.S.
commercial/multifamily
originator in 2009
Wells Fargo Bank
was the top com-
merci al / mul t i -
family originator
in 2009, accord-
ing to a set of listings released by the
Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
Other originators in the top 10 include
PNC Real Estate, Deutsche Bank
Commercial Real Estate, CBRE Capital
Markets Inc., HFF LP, Prudential
Mortgage Capital Company, Meridian
Capital Group, MetLife, Northmarq
Capital LLC and Capmark Financial
Group Inc.
Eight different companies topped
the 11 lists reporting originations by
investor groups:
O Wells Fargo Bank as the top origina-
tor for commercial banks/savings
news flash continued from page 20
How do you deliver unique value?
Consider this loan comparison prepared for an investor who wants to purchase a
$200,000 property with 25 percent down:
Most investors think that a 15-year mortgage carries less risk than a 30-year
mortgage, and a 30-year mortgage carries less risk than an interest only
adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM). However, one of the biggest risks with income
property is that the property goes vacant. In that case, if the investor fails to make
their mortgage payment, the property will go into foreclosure and the investor will
lose all their principal investment.
As you can see from the illustration, the seven-year interest-only option in col-
umn number three will result in more safety of principal. This is because it carries
a much lower monthly obligation and allows the investor to maintain their pay-
ments and/or set aside more capital reserves in case the property goes vacant. A
10-year interest-only option could even be used as a variation to this strategy if the
investors time horizon for the property is greater than five to seven years.
The interest-only option also results in greater monthly income and a higher
rate of return than either the 30-year option or the 15-year option. In other words,
if you were trained and equipped to calculate and compare IRR for your investor
clients, you could show investors and their CPAs, financial advisors, and Realtors
Rate of return
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Investors currently account for 19 percent of all home sales according to the
National Association of Realtors (NAR). This means that real estate investors are
purchasing one out of every five residential homes being sold today. In fact, it is
estimated that a whopping $141 billion of non-owner-occupied investment prop-
erty loans will be funded in 2010. What if you could capture more business from
this lucrative segment of the market?
Finding qualified real estate
investors
The first step to working with qualified investors is to
find them! Im not talking about a wanna-be
investor with a 520 credit score who wants to buy a
foreclosed property with no money down. Im not talk-
ing about a speculator who wants to flip properties
by buying today and selling tomorrow. No; Im talking
about an investor who is defined by the financial
dictionary as being:
A person who purchases income-producing assets. An
investor as opposed to a speculator usually considers
safety of principal to be of primary importance. In
addition, investors frequently purchase assets with the
expectation of holding them for a longer period of
time than speculators.
So, where do you find true, qualified investors
who frequently purchase or would like to fre-
quently purchase income-producing real estate
rental properties? When you go fishing, it helps to
fish in a lake or stream where there are a lot of
fish. The same idea applies to fishing for quali-
fied investors. This is as simple as establishing referral relationships with
CPAs, attorneys, financial advisors and Realtors who specialize in working
with real estate investors. After all, who uses a CPA? Business owners and/or
people who pay a lot of taxes; and remember, you dont pay taxes unless you
are making money. Who uses a financial advisor? People who need advice or
help in managing their money; and remember, you dont need financial
advice or money management services unless you actually have money to
invest.
You get the picture.
Adding unique value and capturing the business
In order to capture your share of the $141 billion of annual loan volume from
qualified real estate investors you need to find out what is important to them and
their financial advisors. Then, you need to find a way to deliver this value in way
that is more unique and effective than your competition.
What is important?
When we go back to our definition of investor, we discover that investors
are looking for income and consider safety of principal to be of primary
importance. Put simply, in order to capture the business, you will need to
show investors how working with you and implementing your strategies will
result in:
O More safety of their principal
O More income and a higher rate of return on their investment
BY GIBRAN NICHOLAS
Real Estate Investors:
The $141 Billion Market
In order to capture
your share of the
$141 billion of annu-
al loan volume from
qualified real estate
investors you need to
find out what is
important to them
and their financial
advisors.
continued on page 28
Cash flows
30-year fixed 15-year fixed 7-year interest-only ARM
Value of property $200,000 $200,000 $200,000
1st mortgage balance $150,000 $150,000 $150,000
Interest rate 5.250% 4.625% 4.750%
Monthly payment $828.31 $1,157.10 $593.75
Term Amortized Amortized Interest-only
Points 2.000% 2.000% 2.000%
First mortgage closing costs $2,400 $2,400 $2,400
Total points & costs $5,400 $5,400 $5,400
Monthly taxes & expenses $525 $525 $525
Gross monthly rent $1,500 $1,500 $1,500
Monthly cash flow $146.69 -$182.10 $381.25
Cash needed to close $55,400 $55,400 $55,400
30-year fixed 15-year fixed 7-year interest-only ARM
Current value of property $200,000 $200,000 $200,000
Current mortgage balance $150,000 $150,000 $150,000
Equity invested plus costs (PV) $55,400 $55,400 $55,400
Rate of appreciation 3.000% 3.000% 3.000%
Value of property in
seven years $245,975 $245,975 $245,975
Mortgage balance in
seven years $132,580 $92,700 $150,000
Equity in seven years (FV) $113,395 $153,275 $95,975
Monthly cash flow (PMT) $146.69 -$182.10 $381.25
Annual internal rate of
return (IRR) over seven years 12.58% 12.17% 14.38%
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EXECUTIVE OFFICES:
108 Corporate Park Drive, Suite 301, White Plains, NY 10604
CALL: Louis Tesoriero at 888-329-GHMC.
www.joinguaranteed.com
Branch Program for Professionals
IT'S ALL WE DO.
You've Decided to Make a Move...
5 Questions You Must Ask!
1. Have they been branching for nearly two decades?
2. Will they work closely with you to expand your business?
3. Will they provide underwriting, compliance and accounting?
4. Can they license your branch in multiple states?
5. Will they pay the next day, on funded loans?
Guaranteed Home Mortgage Company was founded in 1992 and was
named in the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing companies in the United States.
Last year, we moved to a larger headquarters to support our expansion.
Call Louis Tesoriero today to learn about our winning team, and nd out
why so many professionals have joined Guaranteed.
housing market has now begun to
show signs of stabilizing, we see an
opportunity to apply Sterlings capital,
experience and market knowledge to
fill this financing need and generate
solid returns on our investment in the
warehouse business. In keeping with
our traditional disciplined and pru-
dent approach, our focus will be on
financing only the most qualified,
experienced and successful mortgage
banking firms.
For more information, visit www.ster-
lingbancorp.com.
Byte Software partners
with AppraiserLoft for
integration in BytePro
Byte Software, a provider of mortgage
software solutions for banks, credit
unions, mortgage bankers and mort-
gage brokers has partnered with
AppraiserLoft to provide compliant
and warranted valuation products to
Byte Software customers. The inte-
grated solution allows Byte Software
customers to quickly and seamlessly
order AppraiserLoft services directly
from within Byte Softwares BytePro
loan origination software (LOS). Byte
Software specializes in providing soft-
ware products to streamline and
automate the processes used by
mortgage originators, processors and
closers.
AppraiserLoft, a nationwide appraisal
management company (AMC) operating
in all 50 states, offers residential valua-
tion services targeting the mortgage
lending and servicing industries.
AppraiserLoft provides immediate
access to residential real estate apprais-
al services through an in-house devel-
oped appraisal platform. AppraiserLofts
proprietary platform and processes
allows for client collaboration to help
provide customized solutions. This col-
laboration and customization adds
continued on page 26
In order to ensure that homeowners
have consistent and direct contact
with an experienced servicing special-
ist, each iServe Servicing loss mitiga-
tion specialist manages less than 200
cases at any one time.
We are proud to participate in the
HAMP program and apply our unique
approach to loan servicing and loss mit-
igation for institutions and private
investors that are looking to work with-
in the HAMP guidelines and also for
larger servicers that are looking for a
specialized partner to help them with
component servicing mandates, said
Cimino.
For more information, visit www.iserve-
companies.com.
Sterling Bancorp
announces launch of
Sterling Warehouse
Lending Group
Sterling Bancorp, a financial holding
company based in New York City and
the parent company of Sterling
National Bank, has announced the
launch of a new mortgage warehouse
lending business to serve the financing
needs of the residential mortgage
banking industry as the U.S. housing
market recovers. Known as Sterling
Warehouse Lending Group, the new
division will provide funding to highly
qualified mortgage banking firms from
the time of closing until the mortgages
are sold.
Our new warehouse lending opera-
tion is an excellent example of our
strategies to deploy the capital from
our recent common stock offering to
grow our core business, noted Sterling
Bancorps Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Louis J. Cappelli.
Warehouse lending is a natural exten-
sion of our business, drawing upon
Sterlings demonstrated strengths in
both asset-based financing and mort-
gage banking.
Sterling Warehouse Lending Group
will focus on serving established mort-
gage banking firms and will concen-
trate primarily on warehouse facilities
secured by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
and Federal Housing Administration
(FHA) residential loans.
The company is building a team
of experienced warehouse lending
professionals to work with its exist-
ing personnel in maximizing the
opportunities for this business. Gary
Timmerman, with more than 20
years of executive experience in
bank warehouse lending, has joined
as senior vice president and manag-
ing director of Sterling Warehouse
Lending Group.
Warehouse lending has historically
been a successful product for a num-
ber of banks, said Cappelli. As the
heard on the street continued from page 22
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You dont need to be a credit expert to
start your own Credit Repair business
Fortunately, with HTDI Financials Credit Services Or-
ganization (CSO) program, you will be able to handle
ALL aspects of your business except having to do the
actual repairs; we do that for you! We will train you on
how to handle these customers and you will have the
support you need every step of the way. We will make
you look like a Fortune 500 company even if you work
from home! YOU control how much money you make.
In fact, through our CRM, we give you the tools and
resources to harvest leads, manage prospects and mon-
itor their progress.
You dont have to spend tens of thousands of
dollars for start-up costs for your own Credit
Repair Company
Once you are set up in our system, you will get access
to software and tools that HTDI has spent over $1 mil-
lion on research and development. You dont need to
spend an arm and a leg to start building your own
credit repair business. Here is a quote from a mortgage
company located in upstate New York who spent
months of research before choosing HTDI:
Until last year, I owned a large mortgage com-
pany in upstate NY with over 125 employees. We
got hit hard during the mortgage industry crash
and had to close our doors. I was stuck in a posi-
tion with thousands of leads and customers that
couldnt get qualified for anything. I decided to
start looking for a way to capitalize on my left
over resources and help people in the process. I
called many other credit repair companies and
was very unimpressed. One west coast based
company was charging $15,000 and had nothing
but negatives written about them on the Internet.
Then I found HTDI. They helped me to get
started at the beginning of this year and it has
been great. I have not only made great money
helping people to repair their credit, but I have re-
financed 8 of them and helped 6 buy houses that
would have never qualified with the new guide-
lines. The software is very user friendly and all of
my clients, affiliates and Brokers have increased
business because of it.
Get those impossible to close deals
CLOSED!
As the number of loan programs are shrinking, the bar
on credit scores keep rising. This program will allow
your borrowers to become Mortgage Ready as soon
as 45 days. As one of our CSO stated:
I have many loan officers that are now able to
send their clients through the credit repair, raise
their scores, and then close the clients loan that
they couldnt close before due to bad credit! It
means more loans and more revenue for my loan
officers. Even better than that, it is very reward-
ing to be able to help a client regain their credit
and be able to get the loan they need.
Get started in a business that is booming
and shows no signs of slowing
The credit industry, as a whole, is one of the most pow-
erful and profitable industries in existence. With
loans, insurance and even employment taken into con-
sideration individuals credit picture, the credit indus-
try is getting bigger every day.
Inside the credit industry, Credit Services is helping by
assisting consumers with getting back on track by re-
moving unverifiable and inaccurate negative items
from their credit reports. As a CSO, you can benefit in
being in a profitable industry and helping clients with
their futures.
Ive been in the mortgage business over 22 years.
A year ago, as the mortgage crisis worsened, I
began trying to find a way to help clients who
needed a better credit profile in order to get a
mortgage. Fortunately for both me and my
clients, I stumbled on HTDI. After a year of ex-
perience, I can honestly say the success rate is
100% and client satisfaction is through the roof.
All of my clients have seen significant improve-
ments, and some have experienced breathtaking
jumps in their credit scores, even on the first
round!
From Day One you can be sure your back of-
fice (HTDI) has you covered. They will execute
their part of the job seamlessly, with precision,
on time, and with total consistency. All you have
to do is SELL the service! Just sign people up, col-
lect the money, and send HTDI the paperwork
they need to get started. If you simply focus on
selling the service, you will make lots of money,
the work will get done, and you will never have
to worry about unhappy customers.
Although I got into it as a part timer, I now realize
this is an excellent full time business opportunity.
(Frankly, these days its probably a better business
than the mortgage business!) You could easily make
six figures in the first year with a minimal invest-
ment of money. How many opportunities like this
exist these days? What you must invest is your time
SELL, SELL, SELL & SELL some more! Ulti-
mately, what you are selling is the professionalism
of HTDI, which is why this really rocks as a busi-
ness opportunity.
We average one of the highest fix/deletion rates in the indus-
try for the first 45 days of service. Shown below, in real-time,
is the average percentage of fix/deletes per round.
If you are going to get involved in Credit
Repair, be VERY CAREFUL
First you have Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The
FCRA holds credit bureaus and creditors to their report-
ing methods and has guidelines they must comply with.
There are numerous techniques that are used along with
similar laws to maximize results for each client. You must
know these laws inside out.
You cant forget Credit Repair Organizations Act.
(CROA). Just like the FCRA, the CROA hold credit repair
companies to specific guidelines as well. If you choose
HTDI Financial for your backend processing, we will en-
sure you maintain compliance.
Lastly, you have applicable State Laws. Depending on
the state you wish to conduct business in, you may
have a state Credit Services Organizations act to com-
ply with.
As an active member in good standing of the National
Association of Credit Services Organizations, you can
be sure that we take our job very seriously, making sure
you stay compliant and your clients.
Why some Mortgage Professionals fail
in Credit Repair while others
Make Serious Money
There is only one step you need to take;
visit www.startacreditrepaircompany.com or
call us at 877-877-4834 option 5.
Mortgage Professionals make money in credit repair while getting borrowers Mortgage Ready!
Industry Leading Results
46.95%
20.44%
17.32%
14.21%
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4
FREE
demo available
www.startacreditrepaircompany.com
software returning the full appraisal
meeting all FHA regulations and HVCC
guidelines.
For more information, visit www.byte-
software.com or www.appraiserloft.com.
IMS expands REO asset
management offering with
REO Leasing Solutions
Integrated Mortgage
Solutions (IMS) and
REO Leasing Solutions
LLC have joined forces to address the loss
mitigation and real estate-owned (REO)
challenges in todays housing market.
Ever-changing legislation necessi-
tates uniting with a proven organiza-
tion that has deep experience in the
both the mortgage market as well as
property management in the residen-
tial market, said Cheryl Lang, presi-
dent and chief executive officer of IMS.
REO Leasing Solutions brings a sea-
soned management team and a nation-
al perspective to this emerging market.
In working with REO Leasing Solutions,
IMS is equipped to offer additional loss
mitigation and REO options to our cus-
tomer base. The additional expertise
that REO Leasing Solutions deliver
enables IMS to work within landlord-
tenant lawleases, tenant qualifica-
tion, payment by credit card, tenant
turnover, make ready, and habitability
and maintenance requirements.
IMS adds the deep experience of
REO Leasing Solutions in residential
market property management to its
distressed portfolio management
services. IMS provides an array of
asset management solutions on a
third-party basis to mortgage ser-
vicers, expediting the loss mitigation
process.
We are strategically building our
company in order to provide organiza-
tions like IMS with end-to-end specialty
solutions in the distressed market and
on a scale they demand, said C. Alan
Paylor, president of REO Leasing
Solutions LLC. IMS is able to give their
investors immediate options, even at
their initial due diligence of a distressed
portfolio. REO Leasing Solutions can
model a rent/lease option and provide
cash flow analysis and ROI on a portfo-
lio or a single loan.
For more information, visit www.imsto-
day.net or www.reo2lease.com.
Intelenet partners with
SigniaDocs for real-time
eModification solution
Intelenet Global
Services, a provider
of business process
outsourcing (BPO)
support services for the mortgage banking
industry, announced that it has part-
nered with SigniaDocs Inc., an
eMortgage solutions provider, to offer
an eModification solution for lenders
and servicers. This online, real-time
approach compresses the loan modifi-
cation process to identify and collect
the required documents into a Mods
in Minutes solution.
The HAMP modification program
has only reached a small fraction of the
distressed borrowers it was intended
for, says Robert Guatelli, vice president
of sales for banking and financial servic-
es at Intelenet Global Services. It is still
far short of the Obama Administrations
goal of helping millions of homeowners
that are in danger of losing their
homes.
Intelenet Global Services works
closely with distressed borrowers as a
seamless extension of the lenders or
servicers staff, from initial contact to
identifying and recommending viable
workout options, as well as comple-
tion and execution of agreements and
documents.
Using SigniaDocs eModification,
borrowers can execute the documenta-
tion immediately and securely online,
Guatelli said. Immediacy is the key,
and our loan workout specialists can
walk them through the click-to-sign
process on the phone. Within minutes
the mod can be completed.
Tim Anderson, president of SigniaDocs,
notes that Intelenets expertise in out-
sourced support services and process
automation technology combines
with SignaDocs secure eSigning
capability and eModification docu-
value to the clients process since it
allows them to structure the system to
meet their business needs.
In addition, AppraiserLoft is in full
compliance with Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) regulations and
Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC)
guidelines, providing peace of mind to
the mortgage professionals in todays
challenging regulatory market. Masad
Baba, chief compliance officer of
AppraiserLoft said, This integration in
BytePro enables our customers to order
appraisals easily and directly within the
heard on the street continued from page 25
continued on page 28
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What were the hot topics at the Mortgage Bankers Associations recent
Fraud Issues Conference?
First, I would like to say that the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and its com-
mittees that did such a great job in hosting this conference. They featured a great
number of panelists and speakers who are quite knowledgeable in the field of tech-
nology and fraud issues regarding the mortgage industry. One particular session that
really grabbed my attention was a discussion regarding Home Affordable Modifica-
tion Program (HAMP) loan modifications and short sales. I could not believe the
number of problems that plague the federally-mandated HAMP.
There are 300,000 loans currently in their trial period that are expected to go into
default. The reasons appear to be income related. The borrower, when applying for
the loan modification, is working with the loan specialist and when asked about in-
come, the findings appear the income is temporary or part-time, the borrower has
not started yet, immediate loss of income for reason beyond the borrowers control,
or the income just insufficient to make the payments even with a full-time or several
part-time jobs. Also, there appears to be a question regarding getting the appropri-
ate paperwork to complete the loan modification from the borrower. There are two
ideas surrounding this dilemma:
The borrower is not sophisticated enough to know what to do or understand what to do.
The borrower is afraid they will get caught for misrepresentation/fraud once the first
loans income is discovered to be incorrect so the completed paperwork is not sent in due
to fear. When the audience was asked which option they felt was the probable reason,
option two was recognized by a majority for the reason. Simply put, if the borrower is
not sophisticated enough to send in the supporting documents, how did they receive the
loan in the first place. Some enemies of brokers may say the loan officer broker did it or
made them do it. We know that is not true. It does make sense that the borrower mis-
stated or misrepresented their income on the first loan. We know that there are many
honest borrowers who truly disclose their income and not every mortgage loan is fraud-
ulent. We understand many borrowers and brokers made good loans out there and un-
fortunate things happened to many innocent borrowers. However, this was a fraud
conference and the focus was on those loans containing fraud.
Lenders are faced with a moral dilemma if the first loan had fraud for housing
with overstated income, should the loan modification be made? The servicers are
making them. However, what are the statutory limits for reporting a loan officer to au-
thorities for allowing fraud for housing? There is not one yet. However, there are ser-
vicers mad as hornets with loan officers and they may unite and submit information
to SAR and other organizations that are monitoring mortgage fraud.
Servicers are finding the borrower overstated their income when they received
their first loan and understating their income to receive the loan modification. This
must be the few hundred thousand who actually received their loan modification. Ef-
fective in June, all loan modification will require full documentation and the bor-
rower will be required to sign a general authorization for a vendor or third-party to
verify income rather than sending documents to the servicer.
Mortgage fraud is expanded in the servicers world and it has taken them by sur-
prise. After all this time, they are just now learning how to deal with it. We hope the
best for those who are stressed and being stretched, and hope to see America to get
through these difficult days.
By Tommy A. Duncan, CMT
Sponsored by
Tommy A. Duncan, CMT is executive vice president of Quality Mort-
gage Services LLC. For answers to your QC and FHA questions, please
contact Tommy at (615) 591-2528 or e-mail taduncan@qcmortgage.com.
You may also visit Quality Mortgage Services LLC on the Web at
www.qualitymortgageservices.com.
unrecognized, is the Credit Repair
Organizations Act (CROA). This is the
primary governing law for credit
repair companies and it strictly pro-
hibits many practices that are unfortu-
nately still in use by many credit
repair companies today. For a credit
repair company to be compliant with
the most basic of CROA regulations,
they must start with a clear contract
spelling out exactly what they will do
for the consumer, inform
them of their rights and
not charge the consumer
any fees until all terms
of the contract have
been completed.
Many of these compa-
nies have policies that
barely meet the require-
ments of the law, and
would likely fail a CROA
legal challenge by a con-
sumer or government
enforcement agency. Even
a couple of the national
credit repositories and
Fair Isaac and Company
(FICO) got surprised by
CROA litigation chal-
lenges regarding the sale
of their credit reports, scores and cred-
it correction/improvement programs
on the Web for violating the pre-pay-
ment portion of CROA. If you are inter-
ested in further detail, log on to
http://www.ftc.gov/ro/chro/credit.shtm
for a complete copy of the CROA.
The sale of credit reports
The second issue, and the issue with
the greatest potential impact on your
ability to continue your mortgage
origination business, is related to the
three national credit repositories and
their policies prohibiting the sale of
credit reports to companies in the
business of credit repair. Any accurate
derogatory data on a consumers
credit report cannot be removed
through legal methods until the
statute of limitations expires (seven
years for everything other than bank-
ruptcy, which is 10 years). Companies
that make claims other than that
In early 2008, with the industry enter-
ing a meltdown that made most night-
mares serene, a troubling trend
emerged. It was the feature of cover
story of the issue of Broker Magazine
that discussed various methods of cred-
it restoration and improvement. With
the mortgage marketplace drastically
changing over the past year, it was easy
to understand the increased awareness
in the maximization of a consumers
credit score in an attempt
to salvage every loan, and
make some extra income
to boot. Other articles
have since been written
in several mortgage pub-
lications featuring these
programs. With todays
increased underwriting
scrutiny, providing deci-
sions that hang on the
smallest of credit score
margins. The desire to be
involved in making credit
improvement happen is
obvious, but at what cost?
There is no shortage
of firms looking to part-
ner with mortgage orig-
inators offering various
methods of correcting, improving or
repairing credit, and profits from
the process there are two very
important missing aspects of credit
repairaspects that mortgage orig-
inators must carefully consider when
working with their clients and credit
repair companies. While the firms
promoting these programs will
address one of the problems, they
miss one very important one
mortgage originators must be
warned: Being involved with credit
repair may bring major conse-
quences, including the loss of your
ability to originate loans!
In terms of legality
The first issue with credit repair
involves its legality. Does the program
specifically comply with federal law?
In addition to the Fair Credit
Reporting Act (FCRA), there are very
specific and strict laws about credit
repair. One of the most important
laws, and one of the most frequently
Mortgage Originators be
Warned: Credit Repair
Could End Your
Mortgage Career!
By Terry W. Clemans
The desire to be
involved in making
credit improvement
happen is obvious,
but at what cost?
continued on page 28
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relationships with approximately 1,000
independent real estate agents nation-
wide to the National Quick Sale plat-
form, working with both buyers and
sellers to effect successful short sale
transactions. As a national mortgage
banking firm, Hollander Financial will
also be offering financing options, pro-
viding additional continuity and speed
to the process.
Short sales can be complex, said
Mark Hollander, president of Hollander
Financial. National Quick Sale has
found a way to simplify and accelerate
them immensely, and it is our role to
bring that message to the marketplace.
Real estate professionals see the enor-
mous potential offered by short sales,
and National Quick Sale makes those
opportunities realistic with their tech-
nology platform. We are using social
media, our Web site and other means to
make certain all parties know that short
sales no longer have to be an ordeal.
Thanks to National Quick Sale, they are a
viable, commissionable business oppor-
tunity for Realtors and a sound exit strat-
egy for borrowers in trouble.
Short sales let the market do most of
the work in the recovery process, said
Rich Rollins, founder and chief executive
officer of National Quick Sale. Instead of
foreclosures and vacant houses, motivat-
ed buyers can benefit from realistic offers
and lenders can reduce losses substantial-
ly. This partnership with Hollander
Financial means thousands more people
can sell their homes and avoid the pain
and misery of the foreclosure process. By
ments to make the Mod in Minutes
possible.
Nearly every servicer Ive spoken
with has said that their number one
challenge is getting documents com-
pleted and executed in a timely man-
ner, said Anderson. With the size of
the task at hand, it seems logical to me
that strained lenders and servicers
would outsource these functions to
quickly scale and address the problem,
rather than throwing people and paper
at the process. From a true cost and
efficiency perspective, our partnership
with Intelenet Global Services provides
a best of both worlds approach.
For more information, visit
www.IntelenetGlobal.com or
www.SigniaDocs.com.
National Quick Sale and
Hollander join forces to
expedite short sales
National Quick Sale, a
provider of short sale
automation technolo-
gy, has announced an
agreement with real estate and mortgage
services provider Hollander Financial
Holding Inc. of Claremont, Calif., to pro-
mote the use of its short sale platforms
capabilities through Hollanders network
of real estate professionals nationwide.
National Quick Sales Web-based tech-
nology enables all parties in a short sale
opportunity to monitor workflow and
complete documentation requirements
in a condensed time frame.
Hollander Financial will bring its
heard on the street continued from page 26
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To Get Started Today, Contact Us At:
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trend spotter continued from page 24
how working with you and implement-
ing your strategies will result in:
O More safety of their principal
O More income and a higher rate of
return on their investment
As an investor, wouldnt you much
rather deal with a loan originator who is
trained and qualified to help you preserve
safety of your principal while enhancing
your income and rate of return? As a CPA,
financial advisor or Realtor, wouldnt you
feel more comfortable referring your
clients to a loan originator who can make
you look good by wowing your clients,
and helping them make smart real estate
investment choices? Remember, Realtors
make more money the more transactions
they close. If you can help their investor
clients make more money with less risk,
the investors will buy more properties, and
the Realtors will make more money.
CMPS certification equips you with
unique knowledge, training, tools and
resources to help you and your clients cal-
culate and compare IRR, and implement
the seven keys of profitable real estate
investment. Its time for you to capture
your share of this $141 billion market!
Gibran Nicholas is the founder and
chairman of the CMPS Institute, which
administers the Certified Mortgage
Planning Specialist (CMPS) designation.
The CMPS Institute has enrolled more
than 5,500 members since its founding
in 2005. Gibran is also the chairman of
Published Daily, a customizable online
magazine, newsletter and marketing
service that helps professionals trans-
form their clients and prospects into a
referral-generating sales force. He may
be reached at (888) 608-9800, ext. 101 or
e-mail gibran@cmpsinstitute.org.
Visit author Gibran Nicholass
blog at http://gibranni-
cholas.com where he shares
his insights on economics, real
estate and financial issues, including the
current mortgage and credit crises.
fair lending violations continued from page 27
should have their practices carefully
reviewed for both FCRA and CROA
compliance.
Since any firm that is found to be in
the business of credit repair no longer
qualifies to purchase credit reports, if
you are discovered and listed on a do
not sell list of the repositories for
being involved in credit repair, what is
going to happen to your mortgage orig-
inations? This also affects any company
that shares office space with a credit
repair company. In other words, start-
ing a new company to shelter the
connection with your mortgage broker
business will not work if you are shar-
ing physical office space with the other
company. This is one of the items
reviewed during the mandatory site
inspections prior to receiving clearance
for the purchase of credit reports.
Mortgage originators now are now
being cut off on a regular basis for vio-
lating this policy.
In a down market, it is only natural
to seek new ways to expand your con-
sumer base and look for new revenue
streams. When doing so, careful evalua-
tion should be given to the potential
consequences to both your consumer
and your mortgage origination busi-
ness if credit repair is something being
considered. Make sure that any compa-
ny you are considering referring to your
consumers meets all of the federal
guidelines for legally offering credit
repair.
The FTC brochure at this link,
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/
credit/repair.shtm, will help you to
determine if the company you are
planning to refer is worthy of consid-
eration by your consumer. And, of
course, if you are considering getting
into this business, remember that
being involved in a credit repair com-
pany impacts your ability to access
credit report information. Make sure to
include the loss of access to credit
reports for your mortgage operations
from any considerations on getting into
this business line and if the potential
loss of your company is worth the ben-
efits of these programs.
Terry W. Clemans is the executive direc-
tor of the National Credit Reporting
Association Inc. (NCRA). He may be
reached at (630) 539-1525 or e-mail tcle-
mans@ncrainc.org.
Visit the National Credit
Reporting Association Inc.
(NCRA) on the Web at
www.ncrainc.org.
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W E A R E R E M N W H O L E S A L E
At REMN, we understand that mortgage
companies perform best when they focus on
whats important: their customers. We are
industry veterans and FHA specialists who
understand that every application is precious.
We treat each file with the respect and
urgency it deserves. Even better, at REMN,
same-day approvals are guaranteed.*
Real Estate Mortgage Network, Inc. is located at 499 Thornall Street, Second Floor, Edison, NJ 08837. NMLS #6521. This information is for use by mortgage professionals only and should not be distributed to or used by consumers or third
parties. Information is accurate as of date of printing and is subject to change without notice.
* Same-day decisions guaranteed if file is received by 11 a.m. EST.
Learn more at www.remnwholesale.com
Its about
time.
bringing more real estate professionals
into the network served by National Quick
Sales short sale platform, Hollander
Financial enables thousands of agents to
become engaged, earn commissions and
help the housing market get moving. We
are very pleased to be working with them
to achieve this important goal.
For more information, visit
www.NationalQuickSale.com or
www.HollanderFinancial.com.
Mortgage Professionals
to Watch
O Elliott & Company Appraisers has
promoted Carlyle Holt to the posi-
tion of vice president.
O Danielle Drewisch has been named
director of client relations for Equi-
Trax Asset Solutions LP.
O Prommis Solutions has promoted
Jennifer Dorris to president, George
Dunaway as chief financial officer,
and Dick Volentine as its new cor-
porate counsel.
O HOPE LoanPort has named Larry
Gilmore as chief executive officer and
has named the following to the board
of directors: William A. Longbrake,
John H. Dalton, John A. Courson,
Faith A. Schwartz, Kenneth D. Wade
and Camillo T. Melchiorre.
O Fairway Independent Mortgage
Corporation has appointed Paul
Walnick president of mortgage opera-
tions and Dan Cutaia president of cap-
ital markets and risk management.
O Saxon Mortgage Services Inc. has
named John P. Kim as head of busi-
ness development.
O Brian D. Frame, CMB, AMP has
been appointed to the position of
director, strategic segment manager
for Radian Guaranty Inc., the mort-
gage insurance subsidiary of Radian
Group Inc.
O Level 1 Loans, a wholly-owned sub-
sidiary of The Sextant Group, has
announced the hiring of Tom
Healey III as product manager.
O The First American Corporation has
named Anand K. Nallathambi as its
new chief executive officer and
Buddy Piszel as chief financial officer
of its Information Solutions Group.
O David Hall has announced the
launch of Hall Financial, based in
Birmingham, Mich.
O UnitedTech Lender Services Inc. has
announced the appointment of Bradley
Coburn as vice president of valuations.
O Anthony Self has joined GoHoming.com
as head of business marketing.
Your turn
National Mortgage Professional Magazine
invites its readers to submit any infor-
mation, events, passages, promotions,
personal or professional occurrences
that seem appropriate and/or other per-
tinent data to the attention of:
Heard on the
Street/Mortgage
Professionals to Watch
column
Phone #: (516) 409-5555
E-mail:
newsroom@nmpmediacorp.com
Note: Submissions sent via e-mail are pre-
ferred. The deadline for submissions is the
1st of the month prior to the target issue.
Carlyle Holt
Danielle Drewisch
Jennifer Dorris
George Dunaway
Dick Volentine
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Abacus
Mortgage Training and Education
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DEADLINES IMMINENT!
So you can return to originating loans.
Credit Plus announces
direct connectivity to
FHA TOTAL Scorecard
Credit Plus Inc. has announced that its
customers can obtain direct access to the
Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
TOTAL (Technology Open to Approved
Lenders) Scorecard through its innovative
technology. Were excited to be one of
the first credit reporting agencies to offer
this direct access, said Greg Holmes,
national director of sales and marketing
for Credit Plus. This connection allows
our customers to save money and submit
directly to FHA TOTAL Scorecard.
The U.S. Department of Housing &
Urban Development (HUD) developed
the FHA TOTAL Scorecard to evaluate the
credit risk of FHA loan applications that
are submitted through an automated
underwriting system. A mortgage profes-
sional simply uploads the 1003 loan data
into the FHA TOTAL Scorecard and the
application is approved or denied. A real-
time response is provided through the
automated technology.
For more information, visit www.credit-
plus.com.
NYLX adds live MBS pricing
and analysis in its price
decisioning platform
NYLX, a provider
of automated
mortgage data
applications and
solutions, has announced a partnership
with MBSQuoteline to incorporate stream-
ing real-time Mortgage-Backed Securities
(MBS) and Treasury prices, market news
and analysis, and an economic events cal-
endar into its LoanDecisions product eligi-
bility and pricing platform. Users will be
provided a dashboard of summary MBS
market data, and access to the rich informa-
tion services provided by MBSQuoteline.
These services include real-time MBS pric-
ing, intra-day MBS price monitoring to
anticipate pricing risk or opportunity,
charting of mortgage rates to view volatili-
ty and developing trends, and concise
analysis of the days economic events
affecting mortgage rates.
MBSQuoteline market information
and services will help NYLX
LoanDecisions users get the same real-
time streaming data professional traders
use, enabling them to stay in touch with
the market information they need, said
Howard Conyack, chief executive officer
of NYLX. Theyll be able to make better
lock/float decisions because theyll have
access to real-time MBS data and will
know about upcoming economic events
that could move market rates.
MBSQuoteline market information and
services will help NYLX LoanDecisions
users get the same real-time streaming
data professional traders use, enabling
them to stay in touch with the market
information they need.
It is a natural fit for MBSQuoteline
to provide its services through the NYLX
market leading platform for product
eligibility and pricing, stated Scott
Sanderson, president of MBSQuoteline.
We supply the essential market infor-
mationwhat you need to know, when
you need to know itnecessary for
effective decision making for origina-
tors when assisting borrowers during
the loan origination process, and for
secondary marketing departments
managing pipelines.
For more information, visit www.nylx.com
or www.mbsquoteline.com.
New Interthinx product
detects occupancy issues
related to fraud
Interthinx has enhanced its flagship
FraudGUARD product with new vari-
ances to help detect occupancy issues
related to mortgage fraud. The changes
come in response to a disturbing trend
the company uncovered in its quarterly
fraud risk reports. Occupancy fraud
showed a slight quarter-over-quarter
increase in the third-quarter 2009
report, which alerted the Interthinx
product team to study issues including
occupancy fraud, buy and bail
schemes, straw buyers, risks associated
with delinquency/default, and risks
associated with increased home value.
The introduction of the new vari-
ances, designed to help protect mortgage
lenders from fraud and improve loan
quality, is made possible by the unique
FraudGUARD comparison of the borrow-
ers current residence to the subject
property. Interthinx is a leading provider
of proven risk mitigation, mortgage
fraud prevention, and regulatory compli-
ance tools for the mortgage industry.
We look very closely at the findings
in the mortgage fraud risk reports,
said Connie Wilson, executive vice pres-
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ident of Interthinx. In the third quar-
ter report for 2009, the Occupancy
Fraud Risk Index, which is closely corre-
lated to schemes involving speculative
investments, declined 30 percent from
a year ago. However, a very slight
increase over the last quarterthe first
since fourth-quarter 2006suggested
that occupancy risk may be poised for a
rebound. We decided to respond swiftly
to this analysis with the new ability to
compare subject properties to the cur-
rent residences of borrowers within
FraudGUARD. As it stands now, results
from our fourth-quarter 2009 Mortgage
Fraud Risk Report reveal a 16 percent
rise in the Occupancy Fraud Risk Index.
The magnitude of the quarter-on-quar-
ter increase suggests that occupancy
fraud risk may become a serious issue
as continuing price declines and get-
rich-quick schemes lure investors back
into the market. FraudGUARD is ready
to support lenders facing occupancy
risk issues.
Using a borrowers current address,
FraudGUARD produces a data comparison
that identifies renters that buy non owner-
occupied properties and borrowers claim-
ing owner occupancy on a subject proper-
ty of lesser value than a currently owned
property; both scenarios present a certain
level of risk. The new variances will also
help identify potential risks associated
with increase in value of housing and the
potential problems associated with the
ability to qualify for the increased value.
The new variances analyze all borrowers
and are available to all FraudGUARD cus-
tomers.
For more information, visit
www.interthinx.com.
Wolters Kluwer launches
new RESPA audit tool
Wolters Kluwer Financial Services has
announced the launch of its new RESPA
Post-Implementation Audit Service.
Through the service, the companys com-
pliance and risk management profession-
als can help banks and credit unions effec-
tively and efficiently comply with recent
changes to the Real Estate Settlement
Procedures Act (RESPA). Since the RESPA
revisions took effect on Jan. 1, financial
institutions have identified several com-
mon challenges in complying with them.
These include meeting the new fee toler-
ance and Good Faith Estimate (GFE) re-dis-
closure requirements, and the responsibil-
ity to make sure third parties they do busi-
ness with, such as mortgage brokers and
settlement agents, are also in compliance.
Wolters Kluwer Financial Services
RESPA Post-Implementation Audit Service
helps institutions rapidly put the necessary
policies, procedures and documentation
in place to overcome the most common
and complex challenges. The companys
attorneys, compliance analysts and regula-
tory consultants use decades of experience
and expertise to perform an efficient and
thorough review of institutions RESPA
compliance programs.
The review includes an examination of
an institutions lending, compliance, ven-
dor management, and staff training proce-
dures. It also includes a loan file review
that looks at GFEs and HUD-1 and HUD-1A
forms for accuracy and adherence to all
RESPA requirements. Wolters Kluwer
Financial Services compliance and risk
management experts then offer a compre-
hensive diagnosis of each institutions
RESPA compliance program, highlighting
any areas of potential concern. And they
suggest practical ways in which policies,
procedures and documentation can be
enhanced from compliance and opera-
tional standpoints.
The effective compliance date for
RESPA passed several months ago, but
financial institutions are still tackling relat-
ed obstacles, said Jason Marx, vice presi-
dent and general manager, mortgage, for
Wolters Kluwer Financial Services. Now is
a perfect time to evaluate their compliance
programs and ensure they are meeting the
requirements through the easiest, most
cost-effective routes possible.
For more information, visit www.wolter-
skluwer.com.
Pro Teck announces
Appraisal Order Portal for
the wholesale/retail market
Pro Teck Valuations Services, a real
estate valuation and risk solutions
provider, has announced the expansion
of its services by offering a configurable
Appraisal Order Portal for wholesale and
retail mortgage origination.
The platform, already in use by top
national mortgage wholesalers, is
designed to meet the national appraisal
needs of the market; including regulato-
ry, investor and Home Valuation Code of
Conduct (HVCC) requirements. With a
streamlined interface, multiple payment
options, robust status reporting capabili-
ties and the quality demanded today, Pro
Tecks solution does away with the need
for a third party ordering platform and
continued on page 32
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Copyright 2010 Emigrant Mortgage Company, Incorporated (Emigrant). All rights reserved. Emigrant is a subsidiary of Emigrant Bank, Member
FDIC and is an Equal Opportunity Lender. All product names, company names and logotypes are servicemarks or trademarks of Emigrant in the
United States and other countries. The information, products and services contained in this advertisement are believed to be correct but may
include inaccuracies, typographical errors and/or omissions. Emigrant does not guarantee the accuracy of the data contained herein. This
information is intended for mortgage and/or real estate professional use only and should not be distributed or presented to consumers or any
other third parties. This is not an offer or guarantee to extend consumer credit. Program guidelines, terms and/or conditions are subject to change
by Emigrant without notice. All loans are subject to submission of a complete application, underwriting review and credit and property approval
by Emigrant. Not all products and/or programs are available in all states and/or localities and/or for all loan amounts. Certain products / program
are offered through third parties. Other restrictions and limitations may apply. New York Licensed Residential Mortgage Lender: Exempt.
Emigrant is registered or licensed with the Banking Departments or Divisions in CT, DE, FL, MA, NH, NJ, NY and PA.
EQUAL HOUSING
LENDER
When You
THINK
Of
THINK
Agency
&
Portfolio
Products!
*NINA subject to state and federal laws and regulations, as applicable and Emigrants geographic restrictions.
We have expertise in New York and New Jersey Co-op Financing!
Call 1-800-EMIGRANT ext: INFO for More Details!
Portfolio:
No-Income/No-Asset (NINA)*
Foreign National Financing
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Agency (FNMA/FHLMC):
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Mortgage Insurance Available
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
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Visit www.NAMB.org
for details.
We are the lender, and nal decision maker, not a broker.
WE ARE NOT CREDIT SCORE DRIVEN,
We look for loans that improve a clients situation, in fact we recently increased our
funding capacity.
No Credit Score Minimum -- NO DOC and STATED Welcome In Certain Situations!
Residential & Commercial
Loan Amounts $50,000 to $2,000,000
Debt Consolidation, Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Buy-Out
First and Second Trust Mortgages
Never A Pre-Payment Penalty
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2. Borrower must demonstrate some capacity to repay
3. Is the appraisal accurate? We are going to verify, not low ball your appraisal.
It's Just That Simple...
Visit our website or Call 877.353.2233 or For Faster Service
Please Fax Your Scenarios To 240.241.5160
www.WeApproveLoans.com
truly simplifies the appraisal manage-
ment process.
For more information, visit www.protk.com.
MCS launches Broker360
to reduce market time of
REOs
Mo r t g a g e
Contracting
Services (MCS),
a nationwide property preservation and
inspection services provider to the
financial services industry, has launched
Broker360, a Web-based portal that
allows real estate-owned (REO) brokers
to access the status of preservation
work completed by MCS. With inbound
and outbound communication capabil-
ities, the portal enables brokers to sub-
mit information and bid requests in
addition to receiving electronic notifi-
cations regarding the properties they
manage.
Broker360 works in union with MCS
existing Web-based client platform,
MCS360, but is designed specifically to
enhance the communication between
the servicers, field service providers
and real estate agents managing the
sales process of REO properties.
MCS360 was developed in response to
the industrys need for software that
allows for two-way communication as
well as real-time delivery of work order
results. While MCS360 is a client-based
Web-portal, Broker360 essentially per-
forms the same functions for individ-
ual real estate brokers, thereby provid-
ing them with up to the minute infor-
mation about their properties and
affording them a direct line of commu-
nication with their asset preservation
coordinator.
This advancement in the speed in
which information is sent and received
allows asset managers to make more
timely decisions with regards to preser-
vation initiatives, which ultimately
enhances short- and long-term mainte-
nance as well as enables them to move
the sale of these properties at a faster
rate. Chad Mosley, vice president of
operations for Mortgage Contracting
Services, said, It is important that we
continue to promote cohesion and fur-
ther develop our working partnership
with brokers. With more and more
properties adding to an already swollen
REO inventory each day, it is vital that
we do all we can to assist real estate
agents in the selling process.
After logging into the system, brokers
assigned to manage properties by MCS
mortgage servicing clients can view
information about their properties
including inspection results, work order
details and photos of completed work. If
they elect to do so, brokers can watch
selected properties, allowing them to
receive e-mail notifications when MCS
completes work at one of the designated
properties. The e-mails are automatical-
ly generated through Broker360 once a
work order or inspection has been ful-
filled and validated by MCS.
Broker360 will not only increase
communication between MCS and real
estate brokers, but it will also make that
communication more efficient, allowing
us to perform our work faster, hopefully
reducing the time properties are on the
market and the cost our clients have to
spend to maintain them, said Mosley.
In giving brokers the ability to view
work upon completion and opening an
additional avenue to communicate with
our shared clients, we can help them
trim down sale cycles as well as portfolio
volumes.
For more information, visit www.mcs360.com.
Bank of America intro-
duces earned principal
forgiveness program to
help curb foreclosures
Bank of America
announced that it
will look first at
principal forgive-
ness, ahead of an interest rate reduc-
tion, when modifying certain sub-prime,
pay-option and prime two-year hybrid
mortgages qualifying for its National
Homeownership Retention Program
(NHRP). Several enhancements are being
made to the program, including the
introduction of an earned principal for-
giveness approach to modifying mort-
gages that are severely underwater. The
program changes are designed to
encourage greater customer participa-
tion in the companys aggressive home-
ownership retention programs, including
our continued strong commitment to the
federal governments Home Affordable
Modification Program (HAMP).
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
worked with Bank of America to develop
these additional homeownership reten-
tion strategies that help ensure sustain-
able solutions and is the most recent
state to join the NHRP. There are now 44
states and the District of Columbia par-
ticipating in the NHRP mortgage modifi-
cation program and related foreclosure
relief payment and relocation assistance
programs.
Bank of America developed and
launched the NHRP in 2008, in cooper-
ation with state attorneys general, to
provide assistance to Countrywide bor-
rowers who financed their home with
certain sub-prime and pay-option
adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs). Bank
of America removed these from the
Countrywide product line upon acquir-
ing Countrywide in July 2008. These
new components of the agreement
apply to certain NHRP-eligible loans
that also meet the basic qualifications
for the governments Home Affordable
Modification Program.
The centerpiece of these enhance-
ments is a program of earned princi-
pal forgiveness that addresses severely
underwater mortgages with some of
new to market continued from page 31
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the highest rates of delinquency
specifically sub-prime loans, pay-
option ARMs and prime two-year
hybrid ARMs that are 60 days or more
delinquent with a principal balance of
120 percent or more, said Barbara
Desoer, president of Bank of America
Home Loans. At the same time,
earned principal forgiveness helps
homeowners, it also recognizes and
addresses the interests of mortgage
investors by ensuring that forgiveness
is tied to the homeowners perform-
ance, reducing the probability of a
future default under the modified
terms, and adjusting the total amount
to be forgiven in light of any gains in
property values that might occur in an
economic recovery.
Bank of America expects to be oper-
ationally ready to implement the new
principal reduction components of
NHRP in May. The bank will identify
mortgages that may be eligible for
these solutions and proactively contact
those customers to ascertain their
interest in a modification and to
request documents necessary to deter-
mine actual eligibility.
With implementation of these
enhancements, Bank of America will
make principal reduction the initial
consideration toward reaching the
HAMPs target for an affordable pay-
ment equal to 31 percent of house-
hold income when modifying qualify-
ing sub-prime, pay-option ARM and
prime two-year hybrid ARM loans that
are also eligible for NHRP. An interest
rate reduction and other steps would
then be considered, if additional sav-
ings are necessary to reach the target-
ed payment.
Bank of America estimates that it
will be able to offer these enhanced
principal reduction solutions to about
45,000 customers who qualify for a
HAMP modification, for an estimated
$3 billion in total reduced principal
offered under this NHRP enhancement.
For more information, visit www.banko-
famerica.com.
Fairway Independent
Mortgage launches virtual
data storage solution
F a i r w a y
Independent
M o r t g a g e
Corporation, one of the countrys
largest mortgage bankers, announced
that it has deployed a new virtual data
storage solution geared toward saving
the company hundreds of thousands of
dollars in costs over the coming years,
while providing unlimited storage capac-
ity. The deployment was a key goal for
the company in 2010, which recently sur-
passed the $3 billion mark in loan vol-
ume, as it moves its growing mortgage
operations toward a more electronic and
environmentally-sustainable future.
Fairways new virtual data storage
solution employs the use of a storage
area network (SAN) which allows data
to be consolidated at a remote data
center where it is accessed and man-
aged virtually over the Internet. For
Fairway employees, the SAN appears as
if its an on-site server, one in which
the data can be called up instantly, at
any time. The new system replaces the
companys network of nearly 30 physi-
cal on-site servers, which is similar to
how most mid-sized mortgage lenders
store their data.
The solution is provided by Dell
EqualLogic and managed by software
provided by VMWare. Since rollout
was recently completed, Fairways
SAN has resulted in a 50 percent sav-
ings across the organization in hard-
ware, maintenance and administra-
tion costs. The company now has an
unlimited ability to add additional
storage space without the need for
new hardware, as well as better data
security, as its mortgage data is now
hosted in a remote, secure location
and consistently backed up.
Given our explosive growth over
the past several years, our growing
data load, and the upcoming rollout of
our new origination platform, we real-
ized it was an ideal time for us to make
this switch, said Randy Allen, vice
president of enterprise infrastructure
for Fairway Independent Mortgage. In
the past five years alone, the amount
of data we produce and store had
grown by 400 percent. While many
organizations our size have not yet
embraced virtual storage solutions, we
believe it will become more and more
critical as paperless platforms and
electronic documentation become
industry standards. Fortunately, well
be ready.
For more information, visit
www.FairwayIndependentMC.com.
AIMSdashboard releases
latest version of its
appraisal software
AIMSdashboard has released the lat-
est version of its Web-based Appraisal
Independence Management System
(AIMS), featuring several compliance-
focused additions. AIMS 4.4 will pro-
mote lender compliance with the
appraisal independence requirements
continued on page 35
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Ginnie Mae saw it coming. The experts
predicted it. And it has finally arrived,
with a vengeance.
The entry costs reduction food-fight
among home equity conversion mort-
gage (HECM) reverse mortgage lenders
is on. Among the major players, MetLife
Bank lobbed the first salvo on March
26, by discarding origination and serv-
icing fees on its fixed-rate HECMs.
Others have since jumped in with
their version. Wells Fargo spread it to its
adjustable-rate HECMs. Bank of
America stretched it to front-end mort-
gage insurance premiums (MIP), offer-
ing to pay 100 percent of the borrowers
MIP and erasing servicing fees. Other
cost-reduction ideas are coming. One
lender can easily match anothers offer-
ing. None has a cost-reduction compet-
itive advantage. The HECM consumer is
the winner. Call it spring sale in reverse
country!
Jacking up volume is a driver of
these lenders largesse. Volume is down
22 percent for the first half of fiscal
2010 from the same period a year ago.
Volume projection for the remainder of
the fiscal year is dismal. High secondary
market premiums for fixed-rate HECMs
is a second driver. A third is lenders
guilt for making a bundle on the back-
end.
What do these happenings mean for
borrowers and the industry? For bor-
rowers, it means more cash at a time of
the Federal Housing Administrations
(FHAs) cash-advance cutbacks and pre-
mium increases. If the trend continues,
it could help change the perception of
reverse mortgages as expensive loans.
If it doesnt, we are back where we
started.
For the industry, it is a mixed bless-
ing. It is a great public relations oppor-
tunity. Government is taking away cash
from seniors. Presumed predators are
giving it back. Forget the $100,000
plus industry repositioning PR cam-
paign. Scream about the cost reduc-
tion revolution in reverse mortgages.
Speak of the difference it is making for
seniors, saving their homes from fore-
closure. Sing about the extra cash in
seniors pockets in these tough times.
So, what could go wrong?
O Suitability: Lenders must ensure
that loan officers or brokers do not
need the fixed-rate HECM more than
seniors. With eye-popping premiums
floating around for fully-funded
fixed-rate HECMs, the risk exists that
some may push fixed-rates on sen-
iors who do not need them. If these
seniors end up losing their lump
sum in some post-reverse transac-
tion situations, the industry gets the
blame, canceling any PR gains.
O Complexity: The flood of cost-reduc-
tion and pricing options is creating
another layer of complexity in reverse
mortgages. While professionals may
find these new options good and
easy, consumers may find them bad
and confusing. Industry should focus
on simplifying these options:

Tell consumers that zero origination

and servicing fees mean slightly
higher rates.

Tell them that high front-end costs

equals slightly lower rates.

Tell them what investors are paying

for their loans on the secondary
market and how it affects their long-
term loan costs.

And tell them that ultimately, they

are paying for the zeros.
O Disclosure: The conventionalization
of reverse mortgage entry costs have
begun. As lenders wrap costs and
yields into rates similar to forward
lenders, they need to disclose every-
thing, beyond the letter of the law.
O Zero-fee conditioning: The industry
has started training borrowers and
the public to think origination and
servicing fees are alien to reverse
mortgage lending. When premium
pricing disappears and it finds its
non-variable operating costs are still
present, reinstating these necessary
fees after conditioning seniors, regu-
lators, and the public to forget them
will do lasting damage to industry
veracity. It will keep feeding the PR
beasts and repositioning the indus-
try. It is short-term thinking.
Atare E. Agbamu, CRMS is author of
Think Reverse! and more than 130 arti-
cles on reverse mortgages. Since 2002, he
writes the nationally distributed column,
Forward on Reverse. Through his advisory,
ThinkReverse LLC, Agbamu advises finan-
cial professionals, institutions, and regu-
lators across the country. In a 2007
national report on reverse mortgages,
AARP cited Agbamus work. He can be
reached by phone at (612) 203-9434 and
e-mail at atare@thinkreverse.com.
Visit author Atare E.
Agbamus blog at thinkre-
verse.com for his thoughts
and insights on the reverse
mortgage marketplace.
Spring Sale in Reverse Country
The entry costs reduction food-
fight among home equity conver-
sion mortgage (HECM) reverse
mortgage lenders is on.
Lykken on Lending is a weekly 60-minute show hosted by
mortgage veteran of 37 yrs, David Lykken, along with special guest
Alice Alvey & Joe Farr as well as featured special guests. Each
week we provide our listeners with up-to-the-minute information
of what is happening in mortgage and housing industry.
Sign-on weekly at
nmpmag.com/lykkenonlending
Twitter.com/ntlmortgagepro
facebook.com/mortgageprofessional
LinkedIn.com (search National
Mortgage Professional Magazine)
35
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of the Uniform Standards of Professional
Appraisal Practice (USPAP), Federal
Housing Administration (FHA) Mortgagee
Letter 09-28, Federal Financial
Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC)
and the Home Valuation Code of Conduct
(HVCC). AIMS 4.4 further automates sever-
al elements of appraisal operations,
smoothing lender-appraiser interaction
during appraisal production.
Lenders are seeking more oversight
in the appraisal process, which may
appear to conflict with appraisal inde-
pendence requirements said Chris
Williams, president and chief technolo-
gy officer for AIMSdashboard. AIMS 4.4
strikes a balance between the require-
ment of appraisal independence and
lender process oversight. The two
seemingly opposed qualities can be
achieved through the use of software,
eliminating dependence on third party
appraisal management companies.
AIMS 4.4 delivers several new ele-
ments designed to restore efficiencies
to the entire process, including:
O An automatic engagement letter
from the lender, which allows
appraisers to accept or reject the
lenders assignment within the
framework of the system.
O Automatically-generated question-
naire addressing USPAP competency
affirmation and ethics rule disclosure
for each appraisal assignment, allow-
ing the lender to actively manage the
process where an appraisers response
merits further consideration.
O Introduction of Appraiser Administrators,
providing increased efficiency through
the performance of administrative func-
tions (appraisal status updates, docu-
ment download/upload), especially
while appraisers are busy performing
field inspections.
According to Williams, the new fea-
tures amount to real-time status
updates for the lender and originator,
as well as faster delivery of any apprais-
al-related notifications necessary for
the Real Estate Settlement Procedures
Act (RESPA) compliance.
More than ever, mortgage origina-
tors are looking for ways to regain effi-
ciency in the valuation process without
sacrificing accuracy, said Williams.
AIMS has always focused on maintain-
ing conformity with the variety of
appraisal independence standards.
AIMS 4.4 will make that process even
faster and smoother without sacrificing
business controls.
For more information, visit
www.AIMSdashboard.com.
LPS Asset Management
rolls out short sale product
Lender Processing
Services Inc. (LPS),
a provider of inte-
grated technology
and services to the mortgage and real
estate industries, has announced the
launch of its professional short sale
service. Offered through LPS Asset
Management Solutions, LPS short sale
solution helps servicers respond more
quickly to short-sale offers and close
more transactions. In the current envi-
ronment, servicers must be prepared to
efficiently leverage alternatives like
short sales. They must also be able to
manage an increase in short sale
requests from borrowers and process
the increased volume, while minimiz-
ing risk exposure and keeping operat-
ing complexity to a minimum.
As the need for short sale manage-
ment continues to increase, servicers
must have an exceptionally efficient
process in place for accuracy, timeliness
and high-performance results, said
Chad Neel, president of LPS Asset
Management Solutions, LPS Field
Services and LPS Auction Solutions.
With our extensive industry and short
sale experience and resources, we are
ideally poised to help servicers stream-
line the short sale process, enabling
them to keep costs down and work
with defaulted homeowners more
effectively.
LPS Asset Management Solutions
has an established network of asset
managers who manage, market and
sell distressed and bank-owned prop-
erties, so servicers dont have to exper-
iment with alternatives or create
alliances that may not offer the same
benefits. LPS Asset Management
Solutions ability to quickly draw upon
related LPS resources, including prop-
erty preservation and code enforce-
ment services, title and closing servic-
es, analytics, valuations, MLS data and
market trending data, offers servicers
a powerful, comprehensive solution
for its short sale needs.
With the expertise and ability to
assist servicers at any stage of the short
sale process, LPS works directly with its
clients to review title; assess and
resolve junior liens; review property
values against short sale offers; evalu-
ate the equity position for each transac-
continued on page 43
new to market continued from page 33
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Brokers Dont Jump Ship!
Loan brokers are one of the least expen-
sive ways to bring a loan to market, said
David H. Stevens, commissioner of the
Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
during his presentation to the National
Association of Mortgage Brokers 2010
Legislative & Regulatory Conference in
Washington, D.C.
Brokers, in their purest form, are an
extension of the lenders they represent
and a borrowers best friend. Without
sacrificing professionalism or ethics,
professional mortgage brokers find the
very best lending programs at the best
rates, fees and terms. They, in fact, do
the shopping for the consumer and this
is why we believe that not only will bro-
kers remain a viable source of loan
originations for the industry, but will
dominate once again in the future.
Bottom line, consumer demand will
dictate it.
Many brokers are finding themselves
drifting about in a sea of uncertainty,
wondering if they will still be in busi-
ness due to the rising notion that
wholesale business is sure to become a
thing of the past. This self-serving myth
is often perpetuated by industry lead-
ers who are using this current climate
to gain market share. Their lack of
belief in those who made them what
they are is shameful and we will not
abandon our business partners when
they need our support the most. Whats
alarming is that many of those compa-
nies, who are pushing brokers to
become net branches, are in fact
wholesalers themselves.
Have we have lost sight
of the spirit of the whole-
sale model?
Paul Rozo, president and chief execu-
tive officer of Paramount Residential
Mortgage Group (PRMG) said, I find
this quite ironic to say the least!
Many wholesalers are speaking from
both sides of their mouth. Some of
them are literally cannibalizing their
own brokers by corralling them into
their wholesale channels by playing
off the brokers fear-based notions,
and ultimately leaving them no
choice but to become part of their
own self-serving net branch platform
with the intent of hedging their odds
against a broker/wholesale collapse.
This is not in the best interest of the
broker, the consumers or even that of
the industry, especially at a time
when we need to support our brokers
the most.
Rozo continued, I began my career
as a broker, and have been disappoint-
ed over the last seven years by the lack
of enforcement of the standards that I
adhered to when I entered this profes-
sion. Have we have lost sight of what
the entire spirit of the wholesale
model is to begin with? Its time the
professional broker reclaims their
role within their communities, and as
a wholesaler, we intend to help them
do just this.
Its time the professional
broker reclaims their role
in their communities
Paul Rozos passion for the broker is
shared throughout his company team
members and is the cornerstone of
their foundation as an organization.
It is part of their culture to serve and
their belief in the broker and is
shared by other prominent industry
leaders as well. I have spoken with
some very high level capital partners
on Wall Street and investors in the
secondary market, as well as execu-
tives at other large institutions who
agree that staying true to a business
model, which is broker centric,
allows wholesalers the ability to
maintain loyalty and gain new broker
partners that few will be able to emu-
late. Said Rozo. As wholesalers, we
need to believe in our brokers and
continue to support them. It is also
important that we continue to pro-
vide educational resources which
remain second to none.
Commitment towards education
and consumer outreach is para-
mount. As an example, PRMG demon-
strates this in their funding of the
Non-Profit HELP (Homeownership
Education Learning Program) and
their ongoing efforts to reach out to
the public with such partners as the
California Department of Real Estate
(DRE), local community colleges, HUD,
the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
district attorneys and local govern-
ments who all believe that consumer
outreach and education is vital to
moving our economy forward.
Choose to remain a broker!
So what about the net branch model?
While net branches have
certainly helped the
small broker expand their
possibilities, this usually
comes with a great price!
This includes, surrender-
ing their brokers license,
loss of commissions, and
loss of freedom to choose
and work with multiple
lenders in selecting the
best loan programs and
rates for their clients.
Essentially, the broker is
virtually giving up their
identity, culture and busi-
ness autonomy to accept
a rather so-called con-
trolled and structured
environment.
Weve all heard
it I cant get
anything done
around here!
In todays market cli-
mate, net branching is
modeled to play on the fears of mort-
gage brokers to get them thinking
that this is their only choice of sur-
vival outside of becoming an employ-
ee of a mega conglomerate national
bank. And lets face it, most of us
know that big banks bank on their
name and reputation and are gener-
ally not attentive to the needs of
their loan officers who are trying to
get that all important loan through
the system. Weve all heard it: I cant
get anything done around here!
Nobody cares, nobody listens. The
banks attitude is, Its our way or the
highway.
When the market was controlled
by real estate-owned (REO) inventory
banks could intimidate Realtors into
requiring that all offers had to come
from a direct lender. Now that short
sales are dominating and Realtors
are able to choose the very best pro-
fessional lenders available, often
they will turn to their local broker
who has been part of their team for
years.
With net branching, the broker
loses the ability to broker a loan out-
side of the company inhibiting them
from offering the best combination of
price and service to their customers.
In many cases, if a non-Federal
Housing Administration
(FHA) loan is allowed to
be brokered outside, the
net branching company
will charge a significant
fee, thus cutting into the
brokers profitability.
Brick and motor offices
have a significant cost
and the originator pays
for these costs. Brokers
who are accustomed to
being the customer
often report being treat-
ed with contempt from
their new employers
when they demand
excellence from those
around them.
So, as a broker,
you have to ask
yourself Is it
really worth
jumping ship?
We say, No! There are,
in fact, wholesalers out
there that will continue to stand
behind mortgage brokers, whole-
salers who believe that wholesale
business will remain strong for years
to come. That belief in maintaining
long-term relationships by providing
continued education and support to
mortgage brokers, along with the
best possible loan programs, service
and technology in order to ensure
they can succeed in todays mortgage
environment.
Keep your identity; choose to remain
a mortgage broker!
Paul A. Lucido is national marketing
director for Paramount Residential
Mortgage Group (PRMG) in Corona,
Calif. He may be reached by phone at
(951) 547-6311, ext. 358 or e-mail
plucido@prmg.net.
By Paul A. Lucido
Many brokers are
finding themselves
drifting about in a
sea of uncertainty,
wondering if they
will still be in busi-
ness due to the rising
notion that whole-
sale business is sure
to become a thing of
the past.
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National Account Executive
Sales Position
National Title Company seeking an experienced sales person to
sell loan origination and default products to lenders and loan ser-
vicers on a nationwide basis.
The successful applicant must be willing to travel, have 5 years of
sales experience, and an understanding of title and closing serv-
ices. Company is nationally recognized as a
premier provider of title and closing services
with an outstanding reputation. Competitive
salary, commission schedule and benets.
Please fax or e-mail resume
Attn: Blanche Harrison
714-822-3222 blancheh@octitle.com
Production is down and regulation is
up. In response, companies hope to
increase production via branch devel-
opment and brokers are looking for a
safe harbor from all of the new regula-
tions. But how do you find the right fit?
Read on and I will share four tips that
will help your chances of getting it
right the first time.
Whenever I write my column, I try and
think of some clever eye-catching title
that will draw the reader. One such title
was based on the well-known lyrics of an
old song Looking for love in all the wrong
places! It seemed appropriate when con-
sidering how some are going about the
process of branch development.
There are two obvious components
in any branch development plan
the branch (the production folks) and
the company (the funding folks)!
Regardless of which side of the equa-
tion you are on, both have one com-
mon goal: Getting into the right rela-
tionships and avoiding the wrong rela-
tionships. If you are a company pursu-
ing a branch development strategy,
you would do well to follow the princi-
ple set forth by James Collins in his
book, Good to Great, which is Get the
right people on your bus, and get the
right people off your bus. The same
principle works for a production group
looking for the right company to
join. You want to make sure you are
getting on the right bus and avoiding
the wrong bus simple as that. But
that can be a bit trickier for both than
it would appear. If you doubt that, con-
sider Americas high divorce rate. It
would suggest that just maybe we get
enamored with all the wrong things
when considering a long-term relation-
ship. Why do you think we would be
good at selecting the right business
partnerships when we struggle as
much as we do to find the right mate?
We are a consulting firm that has
extensive experience consulting to
companies that have, or desire to have,
a branch development plan as well as
to production groups looking for the
right home. Here is some free advice
three tips to be exact that I
would suggest you consider before
entering into a branch relationship.
Tip #1: Consider getting
counsel
The harsh hindsight reality that will hit
you in the face if you make a mistake is
this, You dont know what you dont
know! We all have blind spots. Dont be
blindsided by your own blind spots! Here
are some places to go for advice:
O Friends and family: I dont know
about you, but some of my closest
and most valued friends are those
who tell me what I need to hear and
not necessarily what I want to hear!
This can be the result of being in
denial or just having blind spots.
Getting to an objective view point
from those you trust is important. I
have found this advice to be some of
the best advice I have received
and best of all, it is the cheapest
advice we can get for free!
O An experienced consultant: Unlike
friends and family, this advice comes
at a cost. Yet, it can be some of the
best money you every spent and save
you hundreds of thousands of dollars
in hard cost and even more in lost
revenue opportunities as the result of
time spent. We can always make back
the money, but we can never regain
the time lost which may prove more
fatal than the loss of money.
We dont always have the time or
money for a mulligan a do over if
you will. So, to help you get it right
the first time and avoid those painful
whoops why didnt I see this? kind
of mistake, seek the advice of others!
Tip #2: Consider the
culture
There are three key ingredients, the 4-
Ps, that you should carefully examine
before getting into a branch relation-
ship and these, like everything else I
suggest, apply to both sides of the
equation the company with the
branch expansion plans and the pro-
duction team looking for a good home.
O Products: This may come as a shock
to you, but we are amazed by the
number of times this most basic and
obvious of considerations is being
overlooked. The reason for this is
that some wrongly assume that
everyone in business today has the
same basic product offerings. While
this is generally true, dont make the
mistake of assuming something as
basic as this, or as the saying goes, it
will make an ass out of you and
me. For companies considering
bringing on a production group,
make sure to get a report of their
last 12 months fundings, itemized
by product type. Production groups
dont assume the company you
A View From the C-Suite
By David Lykken
Branch Development: Four C Tips From the C Suite
are considering joining offers the
products you sell.
O Pricing: Most originators dont miss
this one, but more companies than
we can count dont
take the time to find
out how price sensitive
the production group
you are considering
hiring is. The best way
to find out is to again
get, if at all possible,
funding reports of not
only the products, but
also the rates the pro-
duction group funded
the loans at and com-
pare those prices to
where you were at.
O Personalities: Whether
its business or person-
al, everyone is on their
best behavior in the
courtship phase of any
relationship. As soon
as it has been deter-
mined by both parties
that there is potential
for a relationship, then
the courtship phase
hits high gear and our
blind spots grow.
O Pressure: As the old say-
ing goes, Haste makes
waste. Too many deals
are done too quickly because theres a
false sense that Weve got to get this
done yesterday so that we dont lose
this opportunity. When rushed,
things below the surface or blind
spots, dont have time to become evi-
dent and obvious. There are deals
done in haste that blow up that other-
wise didnt need to blow up.
The first two may seem like no-brainers,
but you would be amazed at how many
folks overlook the obvious, especially if the
courtship phase gets hot and heated and
we rush into a relationship prematurely.
How many couples after a few months or
years of marriage realize they may have
been more in lust than in love? I would
suggest that lust because it has a greed
factor to it is way more
blinding that love ever is.
And if we look back at most
failed relationships, whether
personal or professional,
hindsight reveals a selfish-
ness (a whats in it for me
perspective more than a
what in this for us perspec-
tive) and lust (I want this
relationship for me or my
company) as the motivation
behind why we did some-
thing.
Tip #3: Consider
capital constraints
This is probably the most
overlooked important fac-
tor a production group
should take into considera-
tion. If ever there was an
area where the saying, You
dont know what you dont
know, is truer, it is here.
Capital is king if you are a
higher producing group. If
you are a production group
that has the ability to fund
a good amount of produc-
tion each month, you really
need to dig into the funding capacity of
whomever you are seriously considering
going to work for. There is nothing worse
than finding yourself in a company that
maxes out their funding ability.
Tip #4: Consider character
If there has been anything we have learned
from this last business cycle it is that char-
acter matters! Even if you get good coun-
sel that covers the business aspects of the
deal, and if you like the culture of the com-
pany, and even if you verify that they have
There are two obvi-
ous components in any
branch development
plan the branch
(the production folks)
and the company (the
funding folks)!
Regardless of which
side of the equation
you are on, both have
one common goal:
Getting into the right
relationships and
avoiding the wrong
relationships.
continued on page 38
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feedback. To leave me feedback, please
e-mail dlykken@mortgagebankingso-
lutions.com. Also, I would encourage
you to tune into my weekly radio pro-
gram, Lykken on Lending, each
Monday at 10:00 a.m. Pacific, 11:00
a.m. Mountain, Noon Central or 1:00
p.m. Eastern. To listen, log on to
www.blogtalkradio.com/search/lykken-
on-lending.
David Lykken is president, mortgage
strategies and managing partner with
Mortgage Banking Solutions. David has
more than 35 years of industry experi-
ence and has garnered a national repu-
tation. David has become a frequent
guest on FOX Business News with Neil
Cavuto, Stuart Varney, Liz Claman and
Dave Asman with additional guest
appearances on the CBS Evening News,
Bloomberg TV and radio. He may be
reached by phone at (512) 977-9900, ext.
101 or e-mail dlykken@mortgagebank-
ingsolutions.com.
To listen to author David
Lykkens online radio show,
log on to www.blogtalkra-
dio.com and type in Lykken
on Lending in the Search box on the
right-hand side of the page.
plenty of capital, you would do well to
make sure they have the kind of character
and values that align with yours. Failing
this important assessment can lead to frus-
tration in the relationship and even to fail-
ure. What is most interesting about assess-
ing character is that it can be the most dif-
ficult thing to do. Why? In a word, it is pos-
ing. Posing is something that we all have
a tendency to do to some degree when we
are getting to know someone for the first
time. Basically, posing is when someone
tries to project something about them-
selves or their company. This is relatively
common when people are considering get-
ting into a relationship. Where this
becomes a negative is if the intent is an
attempt to mislead or even deceive some-
one about themselves, which drives home
the point that assessing character takes
effort and a plan. This, in itself, could con-
stitute a whole article if I were to outline
ways and tips for making a character
assessment, but for the sake of time, I want
to simply make sure that you consider and
evaluate this critical assessment and make
sure there is adequate alignment so as to
not impede, inhibit or cause the relation-
ship to fail down the road.
After reading this article, I welcome
hearing from you and receiving your
To keep from spinning your wheels, you
have to go out and develop your business
That means becoming an expert in the
mortgage industry, learning the rules
and regulations, being a true resource
to your clients, and helping to steer
them in the right direction. Those are
keys for winning.
Know where the bumps are
Just as Indy drivers familiarize them-
selves with the tracks at Watkins Glen,
St. Petersburg or Long Beach, mortgage
professionals must know the ins and
outs of regulations and regulatory
changes. While knowledge is strength
may sound clich, its true: The more
you know, the more youre seen as a
go-to person. A couple of recent regu-
lations illustrate this.
One is the Home Valuation Code of
Conduct (HVCC). As you are aware, HVCC
establishes standards for solicitation, selec-
tion, compensation, conflicts of interest
and appraiser independence. Since taking
effect on May 1, 2009, it has had a dramat-
ic impact on conventional, single-family
mortgages sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie
Mac. Under HVCC, real estate professionals
and mortgage brokers are prohibited from
selecting appraisers. Lenders may use in
house staff appraisers to conduct
appraisals, but the loan production staff is
prohibited from selecting, retaining, rec-
ommending or influencing the selection of
an appraiser; and conducting any substan-
tive conversation with an appraiser or
appraisal management company regarding
the appraisal assignment.
For consumers, the appraisal process
has remained largely intact. However,
they may find the process takes longer
and may be more costly than in the
past. For appraisers and mortgage
firms, its a different story. Some
appraisers now earn less money and
many mortgage firms have had to
change the way they interact with
appraisers or risk not being in compli-
ance with HVCC rules.
Another regulatory change that has
raised yellow caution flags among loan
originators and independent brokers is
one involving Good Faith Estimates (GFEs).
Lenders are required by the federal Real
Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA)
to provide you with a GFE of the fees due
at closing. The GFE is supposed to be pro-
vided to the potential buyer within three
days of applying for a loan. Smart shop-
pers obtain GFEs from two or more
lenders, compare their costs and ask
questions about any large discrepancies.
According to a February article in The
Washington Post, if the quotes are
made on a GFE, theyve got to be accu-
rate because, under new federal rules
that took effect Jan. 1, any significant
excesses must come out of the lenders
wallet at settlement. Clearly, knowing
those rules and what they mean to you
as a lender can be a matter of survival
in todays complex and highly competi-
tive mortgage industry.
Consider expanding your
pit crew
The HVCC and GFEs are only two of the
new regulations that have caused confu-
sion among many mortgage profession-
als. Thats why it is important to keep
your finger on the pulse of the industry
and stay on top of rule changes. Its also
why you may want to consider entering
into a branch partnership. After all, the
best drivers not only have a vision for
where theyre going, they also have a
qualified crew to back them up and keep
them running at full speed.
In this difficult and changing environ-
ment, a branch partnership can provide
you with many of the benefits enjoyed by
mortgage bankerswithout having to
invest the time and money necessary to
develop and manage a full-service oper-
ation. Such benefits include lower over-
head, administrative support, licensing
in additional states, the ability to write
other types of loans, and more. But,
branch partnerships arent for everyone.
So, as you look at potential business part-
ners with an eye toward choosing the
best pit crew possible, be sure to ask the
following questions:
Do they have a banking division?
A partnership with a mortgage banker
will give you more options; youll have
the choice of closing loans within your
own company or brokering them outside.
How much administrative support will
you receive?
Many of your everyday functions should
be taken over by your branch partner,
including payroll, marketing, informa-
tion technology, human resources, pro-
cessing and compliance. This will enable
you to focus on originating loans. Too
many branch partners, however, can
result in less-than-effective service, so its
important to find out how many branch
offices your prospective partner has.
Are there compliance experts on staff?
The right partner will have the proce-
dures in place to provide background
checks, brand and loan officer licens-
ing, file reviews, and loan audits, as
well as ensure that your promotional
materials are compliant. Such proce-
dures also ensure the compliance of
your other branch partnersan impor-
tant benefit since their actions can
reflect on you.
What products and services do they offer?
Your partner should enable you to pro-
vide a variety of options, such as Federal
Housing Administration (FHA), U.S.
Branch development is a bit like Indy Car
racinglots of fun and full
of twists, turns and chal-
lenges. Like Danica Patrick,
Michael Andretti or Al Unser
Jr., successfully navigating
the competitive course and
building a viable network of
branches requires strong
planning, laser-like preci-
sion and nerves of steel.
The best branch develop-
ers, those who consistently
add new talent, look at
recruitment much the way
Chip Ganassi Racing or Team
Penske view their opera-
tionsas team efforts
requiring strong knowledge
of the myriad rules and reg-
ulations that impact our
business, the latest technol-
ogy, and of course, the abili-
ty to communicate regularly
and meaningfully.
Tips to rev up your business
So, what should mortgage professionals
do to build their business and grow their
networks? Here are some
suggestions based on my
personal experience and
that of my firm, Inlanta
Mortgage, which has 25
branch offices nation-
wide and is always look-
ing for more:
Run the course
Weather, track conditions
and the like can con-
tribute to a drivers suc-
cess or spinout. Similarly,
knowing the mortgage
landscape is essential if
you want to grow your
network. The environ-
ment has changed over
the last several months.
My company has been
telling clients there are
still tax credits available
for homebuyers, the rates
are still historically low.
Bottom line this is a great time to get
out and buy!
Branch Development: Steer Clear of
Risks and Focus on the Finish Line
By Joe Ramis
In this difficult and
changing environment,
a branch partnership
can provide you with
many of the benefits
enjoyed by mortgage
bankerswithout hav-
ing to invest the time
and money necessary to
develop and manage a
full-service operation.
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What is their ideal branch set-up and is
this a good match for you?
The reality of a branch partnership is that
you are choosing your own boss and co-
workers. So its imperative that you meet
with recruiters in person and visit the cor-
porate office. Discuss both your future
plans and theirs to make sure youre head-
ed in the same direction. Take a look at the
most productive offices in your prospec-
tive partners organization and compare it
to how you operate. If you work different-
ly than they do, discuss those differences
beforehand to ensure you wont have con-
flicts later. Finally, put the details in writing
so that everyone involved moves forward
on the same page.
Keep your foot on the
pedal, eyes on the road
Whether youre developing a branch net-
work or looking to become a branch
partner, the process, at times, can be as
challenging as driving 500 miles at
Indianapolis. There are no shortcuts to
success. But with vision, focus, drive
and, like any good Indy driver, the abili-
ty to anticipate changes and change
gears when necessary, youll find your-
self in the position for the checkered flag
and that much anticipated victory lap.
Joe Ramis is branch recruitment direc-
tor for Inlanta Mortgage, a Waukesha,
Wis.-based mortgage banker and bro-
ker since 1993. He may be reached by
phone at (262) 513-9853 or e-mail
partner@inlanta.com.
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA),
U.S. Department of Agriculture and
Rural Development; and 203k loans;
reverse mortgages; and more. In addi-
tion, a good partner will also provide
training so you can quickly get up to
speed on products that are new to you.
How long have they been in business
and what is their reputation?
Once you enter into a partnership, your
partners reputation reflects on you.
Thats why it is crucial to find out how
your prospective partner is viewed both
locally and within the industry. Its also
important to find out whether they
ever been suspended or fined by the
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban
Development (HUD). Generally, the
longer a company has been in busi-
ness, the more stable it is. It also will
have a longer track record, which will
help your decision-making process.
Do they offer multistate licensing?
A business partner that is licensed in
multiple states can enable you to
expand your business and close loans
on out-of-state prospects instead of
turning them away.
Are they committed to technology?
The demand for information just contin-
ues to grow. It is important to have a part-
ner that embraces technology so you are
able to price loans quickly and accurately,
register and lock loans online, and moni-
tor the pipeline regardless of time of day.
Development (HUD) permits a non-tra-
ditional branch office to be, located in
a non-commercial space, but it must
have adequate office space and must
comply with the local government use
requirements (HUD Handbook 4060.1,
Chapter 2-11.C.1.). While HUD may per-
mit a home-based branch office, sever-
al states require a com-
mercial location.
Have you ever
read a correspon-
dent or broker
agreement?
All of the liability is placed
on the company who
enters into the agreement,
not the loan officer who
originates the loan. These
agreements have become
much stricter in recent
years, with some even
attempting to pass all of
the liability onto the origi-
nating lender. The repre-
sentation and warranty
clauses often require guar-
antees beyond loan offi-
cers or the originating
lenders control. The cost
for indemnity or loan
repurchase can add up to
very sizeable amounts quickly. Couple
this with loans that must be sold, scratch
and dent for pennies on the dollar,
because they failed to meet a particular
guideline or because a borrowers cir-
cumstances change after funding, and
you have a financial exposure that some
could not handle.
Staffing the branch
An often overlooked component of a
successful mortgage branch company is
the commitment and passion of the
corporate staff, which is critical to assist
the branches. The dynamics between
the corporate staff and loan officers is
uniquely personal. Excellent customer
service requires specialized profession-
als with a broad understanding of the
mortgage business. Branches depend
on this vital link to the corporate office
in order to succeed. When the branches
succeed, the company succeeds. The
staffing and infrastruc-
ture requirements for a
branch company are
extensive. There are
plenty of loan origination
software systems and
back-office software sys-
tems to handle under-
writing, secondary, clos-
ing, funding and other
tasks, but systems that
manage employees,
licenses and the unique
compensation model in
the branching world, are
extremely limited.
Everyone lacks
experience at
one time in their
life or another
Right now, many of the
companies offering branch
arrangements are just get-
ting their feet wet with the
business model. Sure, they may have
plenty of experience in mortgage lending,
perhaps as a wholesale lender, but whole-
sale lending is nothing like a retail mort-
gage branch company. An independent
mortgage banker or broker who is looking
to expand may have experience with a
handful of loan officers at their location,
but what happens when some of the con-
trol is lost to an offsite office? Federal
banking agency-regulated institutions
offer the benefit of skipping the
Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System
Mortgage retail branch opportunities
are sprouting up like mushrooms after
heavy rains. Everyone, from independ-
ent mortgage brokers to federally-char-
tered banks to wholesale lenders,
wants to get in on the action. These
types of arrangements are often
referred to by different names, branch
partnerships or affiliate branches,
being two of the more popular terms. A
few companies are still referring to
themselves as a net branch, now con-
sidered a dirty word thanks to some
poorly-operated companies that have
given the term a negative meaning.
Perhaps there are so many terms cur-
rently in use because no new universal
term has yet to be coined.
A mortgage branch company is not
an easy business to manage or operate.
To some, opening a branch sounds like
a quick way to get rich hire some
loan officers, make a few hundred dol-
lars off each loan or a flat fee per
month and retire in a couple of years. If
only it were so easy. There are going to
be some tough lessons learned in the
not-too-distant future.
Regulations abound
Both federal and state regulators have
made, and are likely to continue mak-
ing, drastic changes to the industry.
These changes are not going to make
your job any easier. Staying abreast of
these changes is a monumental task
and requires a heavy emphasis on com-
pliance; something a good branch com-
pany should always do for you. To make
matters even more challenging, state
laws often contradict federal laws. The
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban
Mortgage Branching in
a Changing Industry
By Mark Buskuhl
To some, opening a
branch sounds like a
quick way to get rich
hire some loan
officers, make a few
hundred dollars off
each loan or a flat fee
per month and retire
in a couple of years. If
only it were so easy.
continued on page 40
Qualifed Candidates with a proven track record will get:
Guaranteed Salary
Full Benefts Package
Bonus based on proftability of branch offce.
Assistance with recruiting and training team.
Call Dane Basham today 888-544-0034
Gateway Mortgage Group is seeking
more leaders to run a retail branch ofce.
If I was in the market to become a branch manager or work as a loan ofcer, Dane would be on the short
list of friends I would contact. His positive attitude is infectious. You cannot have a conversation with Dane
and NOT be motivated. November 28, 2006
Andrew Berman, Executive Vice President, The Mortgage Press
was a consultant or contractor to Dane at Gateway Mortgage Group LLC
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(NMLS) test and required education, but
they bring about stricter oversight from
their own set of regulators and will mimic
more of a traditional employer/employee
relationship, which can be contradictory
to the loan originator entrepreneurial
spirit. The federal banking agency-regu-
lated institutions are also attracting those
who can not pass the NMLS-required
background check or test, potentially
drawing a crowd that may be questioned.
Do your research
When looking at mortgage branch com-
panies, there is a lot of research that
needs to be done. Loan officers are being
bombarded with opportunities to join a
branch company. Solicitations are com-
ing from wholesale account executives
that are being required to, not only estab-
lish and maintain relationships with
mortgage brokers and loans officers, but
to now actually recruit and manage them
as employees. E-mail blasts and Web sites
claim misleading information about pro-
duction, capabilities and costs. The deci-
sion to join a branch company should be
a well thought out business decision; it
should not be an emotional decision or
one that was a result of a great sales
pitch. Take the time to do your home-
work now and you will be rewarded later.
Evaluate experience
When interviewing branch companies, ask
them how long they have operated
branch offices and how many offices they
currently have. Experience counts, unless
you want to be a guinea pig. This informa-
tion can be validated through HUDs
Single-Family Neighborhood Watch Early
Warning System (NW). If you do not have
access to this information, ask the branch
company to provide a printout for you.
Not only will NW list all of the companys
active branch locations and the date each
was authorized, the system is the only reli-
able and accurate source for production
data and loan performance. Like borrow-
ers, branch companies often speak higher
of themselves than what the numbers
may show. NW reports the most recent 24-
months production data for all Federal
Housing Administration (FHA)-insured
loans, as well as the compare ratio, which
tracks defaults to that of the national aver-
age or other specified geographic areas.
There are two reasons why this is very
important: the first is to validate a compa-
nys production. If they claim to be the
worlds largest branch company or that
they pay out over a million dollars a day in
commissions, yet the data only reports
1,200 FHA loans in the past 24 months,
you know something may be a little fishy.
Secondly, and most importantly, is the
compare ratio. A compare ratio of 100 per-
cent means the companys loans default
at the exact same rate as the national aver-
You may be in the process of making one
of the biggest decisions of your profession-
al lifedetermining whether or not to
establish a branch affiliate relationship.
During the last several years, more firms
have considered such an option. Some are
interested in developing Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) busi-
ness without having to pay
the fees and provide audit-
ed financials. Others cite a
desire to have the corre-
spondent ability, in-house
underwriting, the opportu-
nity to work with a larger
company that can leverage
relationships and obtain
better pricing, reduced
accounting/payroll and
human resources responsi-
bilities, and access to multi-
ple states without the
expense of the required
licenses.
Your success in finding
the ideal branch affiliate
partner will largely depend
on the thoroughness of
your research. The follow-
ing are guidelines to help
you select one whose
model best suits your sales
team and customer base.
Key
considerations
The first step is to determine the most
important factors involved in a branch
affiliate relationship. For example, they
will include:
O Company size/growth: Size can make
a difference. Some companies have
200 branches and others have 12. You
may find the one with fewer branches
is more selective than the larger oper-
ation. The 12-branch company may
give you more direct attention and
take a greater interest in your success
than the one with 200 branches.
There probably will be a more family-
type culture and attitude as well. You
also want to know if the branch affili-
ate prospects are growing and on the
incline or downsizing, which is a typi-
cal sign of decline. Another critical
indicator is total annual production,
as you want to be associated with a
top performing organization.
O FHA lending process: If youre inter-
ested in FHA business (and you
should be), this is critical. Do they
underwrite FHA in-house? That may
be a plus considering lender turn
times. However, if the corporate office
is Full Eagle and underwrites the file,
you have no option if its declined.
Whereas, some companies may not
have a Full Eagle, but utilize lenders
as authorized agents to underwrite
on their behalf. This pro-
vides an opportunity to
revive an FHA loan with
another lender if you
strongly disagree with the
initial underwriting deci-
sion and have the ability
to change it.
O Compensation plans:
This is at the top of the list
for many firms. Some com-
pensation plans are per file-
based flat fee, while others
are tied to basis points, and
some build in an extra mar-
gin, which can impact your
competitive position in the
market. Youll find those
that will cover expenses and
overhead; however, the
commission split will be
lower. Thats fine if youre
not a risk-taker and want to
make a good income by
working the minimum 40-
hour week. If you are truly
entrepreneurial and seek a
higher income, youll need
to assume greater risk and responsibil-
ity, and make a more substantial per-
sonal investment in overhead and
related expenses. In doing so, you will
definitely be entitled to higher splits.
In addition, investigate whether you
are strictly limited to using in-house
underwriting services and a corporate-
ly published rate sheet, which proba-
bly contains built-in margins that can
impact your competitive position.
O Broker/correspondent options: There
are distinct advantages to being either
a broker or correspondent. Its always
good to have options, so dont limit
yourself to one business channel. If
warehouse lines become an issue, you
want the ability to broker. If the whole-
sale/broker channel continues to suf-
fer, you will want strong correspondent
relationships and sufficient liquidity
on those warehouse lines.
O Management style: Management styles
vary greatly and can have a major influ-
ence on your working relationships. You
may chafe under a very structured sys-
Establishing the Branch Relationship
By Shawn Sirko and Tina Jablonski
Shawn Sirko
Tina Jablonski
age. At 200 percent, the defaults double
national average and the game is about
over; the days are numbered before HUD
revokes approval.
Ask for the corporate
contact list now, not after
you have been hired
Look for a company that is staffed accord-
ingly for its size and also look at job titles.
The corporate office should not only
include common back office positions such
as, underwriters and closers, but should
also include IT, compliance, payroll and
support staff who are dedicated to support-
ing the branch offices with anything and
everything, not just underwriting or closing
coordinators in disguise as support.
Banker or broker?
The choice should not be made now, but
on each and every loan. No company can
be everything to every borrower on every
loan. We all want the very best pricing,
instant service, and every program avail-
able, but the reality is no company can or
has ever offered this. Is there a wholesale
lender you have worked with that can do
this? No. Look for a company that offers a
good balance among pricing, products
and service, but keep your options open
to broker loans too. First right of refusal
is not a policy put in place for your bene-
fit. A branch company that allows you to
choose on each and every loan, whether
you want to bank it in-house or broker it
to their expansive lender list, is forced to
compete for your business. Loan officers
want to close loans quickly, close all of
the loans they come across, and get paid
well for their work. Keeping your options
open to both bank and broker your loans
is the key to maximizing your success.
The right branch company will allow
you to originate more loans and put
more money in your pocket. By off-load-
ing all of the back office functions and
associated costs and liability, your time
is freed up to work on the tasks that gen-
erate income for youoriginating and
closing loans and/or managing a team of
loan officers. In order for this to work to
your benefit, all of the other elements
must be in place. You must align your-
self with a branch company that has the
experience in operating branch offices, a
company that has been around and will
be here in the future, so your paychecks
are good and on time.
Mark Buskuhl is chief operating officer
of Texas-based Southwest Funding LP,
one of the longest operating and most
successful mortgage branch providers.
He may be reached by phone at (877)-
878-8989, e-mail mbuskuhl@southwest-
funding.com or visit www.branchsouth-
west.com.
41
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Visit UnitedNorthern.Jobs, email info@UnitedNorthern.Jobs
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ogy, training and back-up. Leads likely
are an integral part of your marketing
mix, so confirm the company has a
track record of providing and effective-
ly using leads. Is there an ongoing mar-
keting/advertising campaign to help
promote the organization as well as the
branches?
O Fee structure: You need to know
about all fees, including accounting,
payroll, technology, management
and other. How often does the cor-
porate entity charge these?
Review process
In addition to information on the above
areas that you obtain from phone con-
versations, Web sites, brochures and
other sources, the following are a few
effective ways to ensure youre getting
both objective and subjective insights:
O A simple Internet search will reveal if
there has been positive and negative
publicity about the company. Are there
any employee or customer complaints?
O Youll get some useful information by
mystery shopping. We constantly mys-
tery shop our competition for retail
and branch development because it
generates valuable data about how
other companies operate. See how the
branch affiliate organizations respond
to a series of questions.
O Ask to contact employees at other com-
pany branches to get the real story.
Query them for their honest assessment
of the organization. You can always
read between the lines. Also, consider
how long the branches have operated
and the length of employment for
branch managers and top originators.
O Of course, you must visit your potential
employer before making a decision.
You want to get a feel for the energy in
an office and how the people interact.
This will also give you a better under-
standing of the company culture. Make
sure to meet the upper management
team and others involved in affiliate
relations. When interviewing with a
potential branch affiliate network,
dont exaggerate about your production
and abilities. You dont want the com-
pany to have unrealistic expectations,
but rather, have an accurate view of
your potential so that you can establish
a solid foundation. Also, you will want
to review a copy of the contract to con-
firm your responsibilities, the compa-
nys guarantees and other essentials.
O Dont forget that throughout your due
diligence process, the companies you
talk to will be researching you. They
tem and welcome a more entrepre-
neurial approach that offers freer rein.
Some people need more structure to be
successful, while others thrive when left
alone, as long as they maintain high vol-
ume. Its also wise to know about the
management and operations team. For
example, if the principal leaders have
not originated loans themselves, they
wont be familiar with what youre deal-
ing with on a daily basis. Everyone in
our company, Gold Star Mortgage
Financial Group, including the chief
executive officer, has a strong origina-
tion background. The company was cre-
ated by salespeople for salespeople. You
should also confirm how accessible top
management is. Our chief executive
officer encourages an open door policy.
O Margins: If you operate on thin mar-
gins and are more of a high volume
discount mortgage operation, you
need to be aware of pricing when
searching for a branch affiliate rela-
tionship. You may not be comfort-
able with a company that builds in
additional margin or charges 0.25-
0.375 per file. FHA yield spread pre-
miums (YSPs) obviously provide more
room to pay such a fee to the house,
but that could be unappealing if you
are a 75 percent conventional refi-
nance-based organization.
O State licensed: If your plans include
operating in other states, then youll
be concerned about where potential
branch affiliate partners are licensed.
You will need to be licensed in those
states and know the type of resources
available to help your staff get
licensed there. For example, we are
willing to get licensed in a state if its
a good fit and the right prospective
company to joins us.
O Diversification: Forward-thinking firms
are interested in diversifying their busi-
ness beyond the residential mortgage
base. Do you want to originate reverse
mortgage loans or commercial loans,
sell life or health insurance, annuities or
credit repair services? Adding these
product offerings to a core business can
significantly expand your revenue
streams, as well as bolster your loan
closing capability. Offering additional
products and services can enhance your
long-term client relationships.
O Support services: You want to be cer-
tain the company provides excellent
support. Is there a compliance depart-
ment? There should be a thorough ori-
entation to learn systems, meet man-
agement and sales staff, and schedule
follow-up sessions. Their service menu
should also include advanced technol-
will call their industry partners, whole-
sale reps, title companies, and others.
They will Google search you. Make sure
if you are doing social networking for
business or personal reasonsusing
LinkedIn, MySpace or Facebookthat
you are representing yourself well.
Certainly, there are other actions you can
take to help select the best possible branch
affiliate organization. Your priority should
be to do research the candidates, ask the
tough questions, be satisfied with the
answers and then do everything possible to
make the relationship succeed long-term.
Shawn Sirko and Tina Jablonski are vice
presidents of business development at
Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Gold Star
Mortgage Financial Group. They may be
reached by e-mail at branchinfo@gold-
starfinancial.com or call (800) 201-LOAN.
42
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Whos Hiring Report
for Mortgage Professionals
Branch Opportunities
Branch Opportunities
Branch Opportunities
Branch Opportunities
Loan Ofcer Programs
Loan Ofcer Programs
Guaranteed Home Mortgage Company, Inc.
108 Corporate Park Drive, Ste 301
White Plains, NY 10604
www.joinguaranteed.com
Teamwork. Stability. Success.
18 year old National mortgage lender looking for existing branches to
join Guaranteed. Our diverse investor list, FHA/VA/Conv direct lend-
ing capabilities, and rapid processing ensure a profitable environ-
ment. In addition, we have an award winning and innovative manage-
ment team and unparalleled client and employee satisfaction.
Get access to hot leads and predicative dialing.
Take your business to the next level with inhouse underwriting
(48 hour Turntime). Monthly minimum volume is required.
Health, Dental, 401k available.
CEO:
David A. Wind
Key Contact:
Louis Tesoriero
108 Corporate Park Drive
Ste 301
White Plains, NY 10604
888-329-GHMC
ltesoriero@ghmc.com
ACC Mortgage, Inc.
WeApproveLoans.com
We are searching for smart, experienced and self motivated loan offi-
cers who want to keep 100% of the origination income on
Hard/Private Money loans. Must have NMLS approval. Some leads
provided. We have the money, can you find the loans?
Locations: MD, DC, VA, DE, FL.
President/CEO:
Robert M. Senko
Contact:
Robert M. Senko
932 Hungerford Drive #6
Rockville, MD 20850
240-314-0399 ext 11
Robert@accmortgage.com
Orange Coast Title Company
640 N. Tustin Avenue
Santa Ana, CA 92705
www.octitle.com
National Title Company seeking an experienced sales person to sell
loan origination and default products to lenders and loan servicers
on a nationwide basis. The successful applicant must be willing to
travel, have 5 years of sales experience, and an understanding of title
and closing services. Company is nationally recognized as a premier
provider of title and closing services with an outstanding reputation.
Competitive salary, commission schedule and benefts.
Locations: Nationwide
Key Contact:
Blanche Harrison
Fax: 714-822-3222
blancheh@octitle.com
iServe Residential Lending, LLC
13520 Evening Creek Drive North, Suite 400
San Diego, CA 92128.
www.iservelending.com/brokersignup.php
CEO:
Gary Willis
Key Contact:
Tom Maykowski
Director of Operations
(877) 308-4117 ext. 335
Inlanta Mortgage
W229 N1433 Westwood Drive, Suite 105
Waukesha, WI 53186
www.inlantapartners.com
With Inlanta Mortgage, youll close loans faster and more frequently,
while enjoying comprehensive support. Our efficient and accurate
services make it easy for you to do what you do best originate.
From FHA loans to in-house funding and underwriting, as a mort-
gage banker, we have the versatility and expertise you need.
Locations: We are currently seeking qualified candidates in: Florida,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North
Dakota, and Wisconsin!
CEO:
Jean Badciong
Key Contact:
Joe Ramis
Branch Recruitment Director
W229 N1433 Westwood Drive
Suite 105
Waukesha, WI 53186
262-436-1278
partner@inlanta.com
Branch Opportunities Services
Shore Financial Services Inc.
770 S. Adams
Birmingham, MI 48003
www.shoremortgage.com
Shore Financial Services is a Direct Endorsed Lender founded over
25 years ago. Were offering Loan Officers and Branches an oppor-
tunity to make 100% commission (YSP Not required to be dis-
closed!) and opportunity to grow in up to 40 States. We offer a Low
Flat Monthly Fee, National Licensing Support, Full Service
Marketing Team, your own Underwriting Team U/W in 48 hours or
LESS, Virtual Origination Software, Mortgage Returns, Flexible
Payroll, BCBS & 401k. Shore Financial Services, Inc., NMLS #3038.
Locations: AL, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS,
KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MO, MS, NE, NH, NM, ND, NC, OH, OK,
OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI, WY.
Key Contact:
Kristina Leszczynski
770 S. Adams
Birmingham, MI 48003
kleszczynski@shoremortgage.com
(866) 903-8953 ext. 5505
CreditAbility Credit Restoration
Hiawatha, IA
www.creditability.org
CreditAbility Credit Restoration is expanding to California! We need
motivated and successful Account Executives. CreditAbility's AEs
receive generous commission structures which can easily result in a
SIX figure income. With some of the lowest fees and fastest turn-
around times your pipelines will grow exponentially. As one of the
only companies that charges NO UPFRONT FEES, we make it easy
for our AEs to set themselves apart from the competition. Don't miss
this opportunity, call today!
Location: CA
CEO:
Andrew Yamilkoski
Key Contact:
Sam Parker
2205 Blairs Ferry Crossing
Ste B
Hiawatha, IA 52213
Work: 319-373-2822
Cell: 319-560-5999
Mortgage Concepts
4170 Veterans Memorial Highway, Suite 201
Bohemia, NY 11716
www.MortgageConcepts.com
Mortgage Concepts is hiring experienced Loan Officers and Branch
Managers. We are a multi-state licensed FHA DIRECT LENDER with
branches throughout the country.
The Branch Manager is responsible for the daily operations of their
branch, including but not limited to establishment and recruitment.
Proactively meets established loan quality and production goals.
Exceptional service is required through knowledge of programs, poli-
cies, procedures and professional ethics.
Locations: AL, CA, CT, FL, GA, HI, MA, MD, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OK,
PA, SC, TN, VA, VT,
CEO:
Steven A. Milner
Key Contact:
Len Ramirez
Vice President
631-580-2600
Lramirez@mortgageconcepts.com
As a Conventional and FHA Full Eagle lender iSRL can assist you in
building your business within a much larger business that providing you
with the needed stability which is so often missing today. With the Senior
Managements commitment combined with many long-standing and
loyal relationships that have been built and nurtured over many years
iSRL and our Branch Partners are in a position to take advantage of the
many lending opportunities that are evolving today.
Locations: TX, OK, LA: David Walden 1-214-878-6300.
Southeast & East Coast: Ken Michael 1-931-222-8023
CA, OR, WA, NV: Allen Friedman 1-415-298-2500
UT, CO, ID, WY, MT: Tony Moore 1-801-824-7243
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Plus Postage
& Handling
Atare Agbamu is one of only a handful of people in the reverse mortgage arena
who possesses a commanding understanding of the reverse mortgage industry.
As an originator, he has hands-on experience educating seniors and their advi-
sors. As author of the Forward on Reverse column inThe Mortgage Press since
2002, Atare Agbamu communicates nationally with the housing finance commu-
nity, bringing the unique insights and experience of an ardent reverse mortgage
expert into a wider business context.
This book combines Atares keen insights and know-how with extensive re-
search to create a first of its kind resource for the reverse mortgage industry. It offers a comprehen-
sive overview of the industry plus detailed information on marketing and originating reverse mortgages.
Present and future reverse mortgage professionals and senior advisors will profit from
decades of experience skillfully woven into this book. If you plan to succeed in this industry, this
book is the place to start.
Sarah F. Hulbert, President, Senior Financial Corporation and former four-term Co-Chair
of NRMLAs Board of Directors
When I first began reviewing the contents of this book, I became quite jealous ... Atare Agbamu
has set down an impressive amount of information ... And he delivers it in an easy-to-read,
simple-to-understand style that will make this book essential reading for all reverse mortgage
professionals.
from the Foreword by Jim Mahoney, Co-Founder and Former Chairman, Financial Freedom
Senior Funding Corporation, and former four-term Co-Chair of NRMLAs Board of Directors
The stories [Chapter 15: Profiles in Satisfaction] are the best vehicle to increase understanding and
acceptance of reverse mortgages among us laypeople. They are very compelling ...
Therese Cain, Executive Director, Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter of Little BrothersFriends
of the Elderly
This book should be required reading for all new loan consultants originating reverse mortgages
and is recommended for experienced ones as well. This book provides excellent insight and infor-
mation on preparing ahead to provide the service our seniors deserve, to ensure a smooth loan
process and shorten the time to closing. Most of the problems caused in the processing and clos-
ing of reverse mortgages come from inadequate preparation.
Deanne Opstad, AVP, Senior Underwriter, Generation Mortgage Company
Think Reverse!
Table of Contents
Part I:
The new pillar of retirement security
Part II:
Marketing reverse mortgages: Its all about education
Part III:
Originating reverse mortgages
Part IV:
Enhancing freedom: The essence of reverse mortgages
Part V:
A new frontier in mortgage lending
tion; perform occupancy checks; and
provide property preservation services,
if necessary.
Additionally, LPS can coordinate
short sale offer reviews to provide guid-
ance on whether the offers are in line
with local market values and appropri-
ate for the servicers objectives. Finally,
LPS can either manage the entire clos-
ing process for short sale offers that are
accepted, or support servicers with
property auction and deed-in-lieu serv-
ices to expand the choices available to
help clients and their borrowers con-
clude their transactions.
For more information, visit www.lp-am.com.
Your turn
National Mortgage Professional Magazine
invites you to submit any information
promoting new niche loan programs,
new products or any other announce-
ment related to the introduction of a
new program, to the attention of:
New to Market column
Phone #: (516) 409-5555
E-mail:
newsroom@nmpmediacorp.com
Note: Submissions sent via e-mail are pre-
ferred. The deadline for submissions is the
1st of the month prior to the target issue.
new to market continued from page 35
Services
New Line Mortgage
5241 S. State Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84107
www.NewLineAdvantage.com
New Line Mortgage, wholesale lender for 27 years, is seeking moti-
vated Account Executives with a proven track record to join our suc-
cessful team! Our reputation as a prominent mortgage banking firm
is built on years of experience and rock solid financial strength. Top
FHA/VA lender with expanded product menu, aggressive commis-
sions, pricing and excellent technology will help you and your bro-
kers close more loans! Benefits.
Locations: AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, TX, UT, WA
CEO:
Scott Leishman
Key Contact:
Shauna Reimann
Vice President
Wholesale Production
sreimann@nlmtg.com
800-979-4494 x 147
Quality Mortgage Services, LLC
1111 Lakeview Drive
Franklin, TN 37067
http://www.qcmortgage.com
Quality Control Auditors-Hiring immediately
Our steady growth affords the opportunity to bring on-board quali-
fied Quality Assurance Auditors with experiences in Underwriting,
mortgage operations and quality control.
We look for qualified personnel whose knowledge base takes them
beyond a check list method need to apply because we prefer auditors
who know how to analyze in depth and detect fraud. We accept remote
applicants and telecommuters. For consideration on please reply to this
posting and submit your resume: MRichardson@qcmortgage.com.
Locations: Nationwide
CEO:
Thomas Duncan
Key Contact:
Michael S. Richardson
Quality Mortgage Services, LLC
1111 Lakeview Drive
Franklin, TN 37067
888-877-7951
MRichardson@qcmortgage.com
Wholesale Channels
Real Estate Mortgage Network Wholesale
www.remnwholesale.com
Wholesale Account Executives Experienced in FHA, VA and
Conforming loan products. A great opportunity for great Account
Executives.
Locations: Positions available in CT, SC, NC, LA, TX, AZ, CO, CA,
OR, IL, OH and other areas.
CEO:
Peter Norden
Key Contact:
Joe Amoroso
499 Thornall Street
Edison, NJ 08837
866-933-6342
j.amoroso@fhaland.com
Wholesale Channels
Whos Hiring Report
for Mortgage Professionals
JUNE 2010
Thursday-Friday, June 3-4
Hawaii Association of Mortgage Brokers
2010 Annual Conference
2010 & Beyond: Dont Toy With Us
Were Licensed & Educated!
The Sheraton Waikiki Hotel
2255 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu, Hawaii
For more information,
call (808) 479-8960 or
visit www.hambonline.com.
Monday-Wednesday, June 14-16
CRE Finance Council
2010 Annual Convention
The Waldorf-Astoria
301 Park Avenue (50th Street)
New York, N.Y.
For more information, call
(212) 509-1844 or visit
www.cmsaglobal.org.
Thursday-Friday, June 24-25
National Association of Mortgage
Brokers 2010 Mid-Year Meeting
Phoenix Airport Marriott
1101 North 44th Street
Phoenix, Ariz.
For more information, call
(703) 342-5900 or visit www.namb.org.
JULY 2010
Wednesday-Saturday, July 7-10
Florida Association of Mortgage
Professionals 50th Anniversary Annual
Convention & Trade Show
From FAMB to FAMP
50 Golden Years
Rosen Shingle Creek
9939 Universal Boulevard
Orlando
For more information, call (850) 942-
6411 or visit www.famb.org.
Wednesday, July 14
Lets Make a Deal Tri-State Wholesale
Lending Fair
Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort
1000 Boardwalk
Atlantic City, N.J.
For more information, call (973) 379-
7447 or visit www.mbanj.com.
AUGUST 2010
Wednesday-Friday, August 18-20
California Association of Mortgage
Brokers 2010 Annual Convention &
Grand Exposition
Hyatt Regency Long Beach
200 South Pine Avenue
Long Beach Convention Center
300 East Ocean Boulevard
Long Beach, Calif.
For more information, call
(916) 448-8236 or visit
www.cambweb.org.
SEPTEMBER 2010
Thursday, September 16
Iowa Association of Mortgage Brokers
2010 Annual Convention
White Oak Vineyards
15065 Northeast White Oak Drive
Cambridge, Iowa
For more information, call
(515) 210-4675 or visit
www.iowamortgagebrokers.org.
Monday-Wednesday,
September 20-22
Second Annual Northeast Conference
of Mortgage Brokers
Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort
1000 Boardwalk
Atlantic City, N.J.
For more information, call
(973) 379-7447 or visit
www.mbanj.com.
Monday-Tuesday, September 21-22
Illinois Association of Mortgage
Professionals 21st Annual
Fall Conference
Location to be determined
For more information, call (630) 916-
7720 or visit www.iamp.biz.
OCTOBER 2010
Thursday-Friday, October 14-15
Kentucky Association of Mortgage
Professionals 2010 Annual Convention
Location to be determined
For more information, call (270) 929-
2836 or visit www.kyamp.net.
Tuesday-Wednesday, October 19-20
Utah Association of Mortgage Brokers
2010 Annual Expo
Location to be determined
For more information, call
(801) 787-6611 or visit www.uamb.org.
Sunday-Wednesday, October 24-27
Mortgage Bankers Association 97th
Annual Convention & Expo
Atlanta Georgia Congress Center
285 Andrew Young International
Boulevard NW Atlanta
For more information, call
(800) 793-6222 or visit
www.mortgagebankers.org.
NOVEMBER 2010
Monday-Wednesday, November 8-10
Mortgage Bankers of
Pennsylvania Conference
Wyndham-Conference Center
95 Presidential Circle
Gettysburg, Pa.
For more information, call (973) 379-
7447 or visit www.mba-pa.org.
APRIL 2011
Sunday-Wednesday, April 3-6
2011 National Association of Mortgage
Brokers 2011 Legislative &
Regulatory Conference
Hyatt Regency Washington
on Capitol Hill
400 New Jersey Avenue NW
Washington, D.C.
For more information, call (703) 342-
5900 or visit www.namb.org.
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MAY 2010
Sunday-Wednesday, May 23-26
Mortgage Bankers Association
Commercial/Multifamily Servicing and
Technology Conference 2010
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers
811 7th Avenue New York, N.Y.
For more information,
call (202) 557-2790 or visit
www.mortgagebankers.org.
Sunday-Wednesday, May 23-26
Mortgage Bankers Association
National Secondary Market
Conference & Expo 2010
Hilton New York
1335 Avenue of the Americas
New York, N.Y.
For more information, call
(202) 557-2790 or visit
www.mortgagebankers.org.
To submit your entry for inclusion in the National Mortgage Professional
Calendar of Events, please e-mail the details of your event, along with
contact information, to newsroom@nmpmediacorp.com.
COMPANY WEB SITE PAGE
Abacus Mortgage Training and Education .......... www.acethesafe.com ......................................4 & 30
ACC Mortgage .................................................. www.weapproveloans.com ....................................32
Calyx Software ................................................ www.calyxsoftware.com ........................................16
Comergence Compliance Monitoring, LLC .......... www.comergencetrustedmember.com ....................23
Credit Mastery Event ........................................ www.creditmasteryevent.com ..............................35
Emigrant Mortgage Company ............................ www.emigrantmortgage.com ................................32
Entitle Direct Group.......................................... www.entitledirect.com ..................Inside Front Cover
First Source Capital Mortgage, Inc. .................... www.fscmortgage.com ..........................................15
Flagstar Wholesale Lending .............................. www.paperless.flagstar.com ......................Back Cover
Franklin First Financial .................................... www.4abranch.com ..............................................28
Freedom Mortgage .......................................... www.fmbranch.com ......................Inside Back Cover
Frost Mortgage Banking Group .......................... frostmortgage.com/nmp ........................................21
Gateway Mortgage Group, LLC .......................... www.gatewayloan.com ........................................39
Guaranteed Home Mortgage.............................. www.joinguaranteed.com ....................................25
HTDI Financial ................................................ www.startacreditrepaircompany.com ....................26
Inlanta Mortgage.............................................. www.inlanta.com ................................................17
iServe Residential Lending, LLC ........................ www.iservecompanies.com ..................................19
Mortgage Concepts .......................................... www.mortgageconceptsonline.com ........................16
MortgageProShop.com...................................... www.mortgageproshop.com ..................................43
NAMB.............................................................. www.namb.org..............................................22 & 32
NAPMW .......................................................... www.napmw.org ....................................................8
Orange Coast Title Company.............................. www.octitle.com ..................................................37
Platinum Credit Services, Inc............................. www.platinumcreditservices.com ............5, 7, 9 & 11
Presidents First Mortgage Bankers .................... www.presidentsfirst.com ......................................31
Quality Mortgage Services ................................ www.qcmortgage.com ..................................27 & 41
REMN (Real Estate Mortgage Network)................ www.remnwholesale.com ....................................29
Ridgewood Savings Bank .................................. www.ridgewoodbank.com ....................................20
Shore Financial Services, Inc. ........................................................................................................33
Titan Lists........................................................ www.titanlists.com ..............................................13
United Northern Mortgage Bankers Ltd. ............ www.unitednorthern.jobs ............................ 14 & 41
Xetus Mortgage Corporation.............................. www.xetus.com ....................................................13
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