Your Estate

I’m back from the NRMLA conference in LA and one of the “big announcements” was the launch of NRMLAPedia, a resource guide for lenders that provides technical knowledge about reverse mortgages.  Think Wikipedia for reverse mortgages… great idea right?  I think so…

NRMLAPedia was created by NRMLA members over the past few months and NRMLA has decided to charge a “nominal” fee for access to it.  Yes, NRMLA is charging its own members to access something they created… such a NRMLA move.  Maybe they want to recoup the costs of burning NRMLAPedia onto CD’s since that’s the way they’re planning on distributing it.  The press release does say that they will eventually put it online, but doesn’t say whether or not they charge members to access it.

I’m going to offer to host NRMLAPedia on my server for free… as a dues paying member of NRMLA, I will happily incur the costs of bandwith and storage as long as NRMLA agrees to provide access to other members for free.  The members of NRMLA contributed all of the content for it, why should we have to pay for it?

This is part of my frustration with NRMLA and I know others feel the same way.  At the conference I was told that NRMLA is looking for new ways to generate extra revenue… makes sense, but why are they trying to increase revenue by nickel and diming its own members instead of trying to increase membership?  We all know there are plenty of originators in the business who are not NRMLA members… why not use something like NRMLAPedia as a way to entice originators to join?

Whether it’s the $25 Learn While You Lunch or the “nominal fee” for access to NRMLAPedia, why do they charge members for these things?  I know this is a bit of a rant, but I’m tired of not saying anything about stuff like this.  Am I the only one that thinks their membership should include these things?

Technorati Tags: Reverse Mortgage,News,HECM,HUD,FHA,NRMLA

Did you know we have a job board?  If you receive our daily email updates (sign up) you already know MetLife and Golden Gateway are hiring.  Below are a few other companies looking to expand:

• Reverse Mortgage Specialist (Nationwide) Transcontinental Lending Group
• Reverse Mortgage Specialist (Nationwide) Value Financial Mortgage
• Reverse Mortgage Professional (California) FutureSafe Financial

The best and brightest of the reverse mortgage business read RMD.  Looking to hire people with reverse mortgage experience?  Post your jobs to Reverse Mortgage Jobs Online and RMD will help get the word out.

Reverse Mortgage Jobs Online

PS – It’s still free to post jobs, so add them quick before we change our mind.  =)

Technorati Tags: Reverse Mortgage,News,HECM,FHA,HUD,Jobs

Reverse Mortgage Solutions (RMS) announced that First American’s reverse mortgage packages and services are now integrated into its RM Compass loan origination system.  RMS Customers will now have the opportunity to use First American’s reverse mortgage document preparation service through RMS’s web application and ultimately saving time and eliminating the need to re-key data.

“Our customers rely on us to build relationships with providers who have experience with reverse mortgages and offer products that will assist them with their operational processes,” said Chad Pupillo, Director of Origination Systems at RMS. “First American is a proven leader in reverse-mortgage documents and compliance. We are pleased to be able to add this important third-party provider to our enterprise LOS platform.”

The document preparation business is getting very competitive.  BayDocs has long been the biggest provider of reverse mortgage documents but is now seeing competition from First American and Mortgage Cadence’s Finale solution.

Last week I had dinner with a colleague who is from the forward mortgage world and has started doing some reverse mortgages over the last 6 months.  As we ate our dinner and drank our scotch and whined about the general market and economy, he blurted out that he thought there should be a Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) spiff for all the reverse mortgages that he had done.  “The only way I may money on forward mortgages in Chicago is because XYZ lender gave me an extra .75 Yield Spread because of their need to meet their CRA requirements.”

I explained that there were two ways to determine eligibility:  The first way is by subject property address AND income and the second method being the use of JUST the property address.  The first way takes into account income and a Chicago senior’s income is going to be less than the whopping $55,760 limit, so we come back to just the qualification of property address as the primary determining factor.  So if most of the reverse’s he’s done are in areas like Bronzeville, Berwyn, Hyde Park (the home of president elect Obama) and beautiful Woodlawn, are these more valuable for CRA purposes than doing something in the Gold Coast or Lincoln Park?  Are lenders getting “extra credit” for our urban adventures into those Low-to-Moderate income areas?  Should I be additionally compensated for these noble efforts or better yet a bullet proof vest?

If Cuba Gooding Jr.’s character in Jerry McGuire was a reverse mortgage originator he might say…”Some originators have coin, but I have the quan.”

Technorati Tags: Reverse Mortgage,HECM,FHA,HUD,News,Jerry McGuire

First American Corporation announced it has developed a new reverse mortgage tool to help servicers identify candidates who may be eligible for a HECM.  The tool provides servicers with a score that examines a broad range of homeowner and property data obtained from First American’s data repository, to determine whether a HECM can be used as one of it loss mitigation workout options.

According to the press release, the evaluation also considers factors like living trusts, bankruptcy filings and powers of attorney.  The servicer will then receive a report that includes an estimated principal limit after paying off any current liens, servicing fees, origination fees, mortgage insurance and closing costs. 

“Last year, 648,000 Americans age 50 and older fell behind on their mortgage payments, and nearly 50,000 went into foreclosure, according to the American Association of Retired People (AARP),” said Randy Gilster, of First American’s Outsourcing and Technology Solutions business line. “Homeowners who are 62 years or older and who have equity in their homes can often qualify for a federally insured reverse mortgage, without regard to their credit score. Our new score helps lenders identify the best candidates for these loans and gives default managers new options to help senior homeowners.”

Enterprise Lending Solutions provider Mortgage Cadence announced that it has added Tim Counterman as its new Director of Compliance.  Counterman brings over 15 years of experience in data quality analysis, operational risk/control, audit and compliance and previously worked with companies like Wells Fargo and Chase Manhattan Mortgage Corporation.  The announcement comes just a few weeks after announcing the arrangement with Weiner Brodsky Sidman Kider PC to help provide insight and analysis on federal and state regulatory matters.

“Lenders of all sizes are looking for compliance and regulatory solutions that enable them to quickly and confidently respond to the myriad of changes taking place, and Mortgage Cadence has the answers and expertise,” stated Michael Detwiler, Chief Executive Officer of Mortgage Cadence.

“To deliver compliance support and insight that is unmatched in the industry we have expanded our already extensive internal team of compliance experts with the addition of Counterman. This, in conjunction with our relationship with Weiner Brodsky Sidman Kider PC, provides our customers with extraordinary solutions and insight that they need to innovate, adapt and thrive in this changing mortgage marketplace.”