M O RTG AG E O P E R ATI O N S
A Compelling Strategy
T
A CASE FOR A HYBRID APPROACH TO OUTSOURCING
he mortgage industry has certainly seen its share of volatility and uncertainty in the past, but it’s almost impossible to have foreseen the market we’re experiencing today. Between historically low rates and a refi boom for the ages, coupled with capacity issues and a shortage of talented people, mortgage organizations have an extraordinary number of demands on their plate. Throw in a global pandemic and sunsetting forbearance plans and foreclosure moratoriums, and you have an anything-can-happen scenario that rivals any Hollywood movie script. There are multiple ways things could go wrong for lenders and servicers this year, and there are multiple strategies they can use to excel. One of the most compelling strategies is outsourcing work, either onshore or offshore. However, creating an ideal outsourcing strategy involves knowing your options and
28 MORTGAGE BANKER | FEBRUARY 2021
By S A NJAY AG N IHOTRI, SOU RCEPOIN T
how they can work to the benefit of your business.
HOW THE PANDEMIC HAS CHANGED EVERYTHING
Due to the growth in outsourcing over the years, most mortgage organizations became familiar with remote work. Now, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work has become common practice. The pandemic also fueled low mortgage rates, which in turn have led to enormous capacity constraints for lenders, a severe shortage of underwriters, and a need to combine underwriting with offshore support. Outsourcing is not a new concept in the mortgage industry, but the number of tasks and processes that can be effectively outsourced to offshore vendors at lower costs has soared recently. In fact, there are fully licensed outsourcing partners capable of decoupling the entire underwriting chain and performing virtually any component of the process, from
loan setup, income and appraisal component underwriting and lender-specific overlays to creating checklists, condition clearing, final approvals and more. This provides lenders with the option to create a customized approach to underwriting that works best for their organization. A popular way to do this is by combining remote underwriters in the U.S. with licensed offshore support. By outsourcing pieces of the underwriting process offshore and utilizing offshore work hours, files move much more quickly through the pipeline, which has become more important than ever.
A FASTER, BETTER EXPERIENCE
There’s no doubt about it – how quickly you close loans is the biggest factor behind borrower satisfaction. That’s particularly true today, as the pandemic has accelerated demand from borrowers for a more digital mortgage experience. Consumers who previously
