December 2017/January 2018 Issue by HousingWire

HOUSINGWIRE MAGAZINE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS We celebrate 45 dynamic leaders of the housing industry.

P.42

ON THIN ICE Expanded HMDA reporting represents new risks for lenders.

P.68

HOUSINGWIRE MAGAZINE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

When

Facebook meets FICO

Harnessing the power of alternative data P. 36

HOUSINGWIRE DECEMBER 2017 JANUARY 2018 EDITORIAL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Jacob Gaffney MANAGING EDITOR Sarah Wheeler ASSOCIATE EDITOR Caroline Basile SENIOR FINANCIAL REPORTER Ben Lane DIGITAL REPORTER Brena Swanson REPORTER Kelsey Ramírez CONTRIBUTORS Casey Cunningham, Mark Hammer, Debbie Hoffman, Jim Jorgensen

CREATIVE CREATIVE ASSOCIATE Chantae Arrington

SALES AND MARKETING NATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR Jennifer Watson Laws jlaws@HousingWire.com MARKETING DIRECTOR C. Scott Smith DIGITAL MARKETING SPECIALIST Caren Karris SALES DIRECTORS Christi Lingard clingard@HousingWire.com

BIG BRANDS COMING SOON LOOKING AT HOW the readership is evolving and growing and HousingWire, we can see more and more visitors to our website from operational locations at Facebook, Google and Amazon. What does that mean? The big brands are coming and tech disruption will become a normal part of our life. At the CMBA conference, and in a follow-up webinar with a HousingWire audience, I asked why no one is concerned that these massive players with bottomless pockets are looking to penetrate our trillion-dollar industry. Could you compete with an Amazon mortgage delivery? No, the best you can do is hope that they will hire you; and frankly, hiring practices at Silicon Valley tend to be favored to, let’s say, the next generation of workers. But, there’s still time. What Silicon Valley fails to grasp for now, but will soon figure out, is the nature of the mortgage business. While big brands resonate with Millennials, it’s not as important in the mortgage finance industry. In fact, it’s word-of-mouth that keeps lenders successful. It’s an honest day’s work at a living wage. The point is, don’t think that putting a nap pod next to your desk will make you modern. Research tech innovation, watch where movers, such as the Vanguards, are positioning their companies. Ask yourself how to work smarter, not harder. Together we can give Silicon Valley a run for this money.

Tyson Bennett tbennett@HousingWire.com Mark Adams madams@HousingWire.com AD OPERATIONS MANAGER Jessica Fly SALES AND CLIENT SUCCESS COORDINATOR Haley Knighton

CORPORATE PRESIDENT AND CEO Clayton Collins OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR Stephanny Morales

Subscriptions are available for $149.00 for one year. A subscription includes the print magazine and online access to the digital magazine. Canada and foreign are only eligible to purchase the “Digital Only” subscription plan at $149 for one year. For subscription orders, call 1-800869-6882 or email HW@kmpsgroup.com. Postmaster: Send change of address to HW Media, P.O. Box 47627, Plymouth, MN 55447. Subscribers: Please send last magazine label along with change of address requests. The information contained within should not be construed as a recommendation for any course of action regarding legal, financial or accounting matters. All written materials are disseminated with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal advice or other professional services. HW Media does not guarantee the accuracy of information provided, and is not liable for any damages, losses or other detriment that may result from the use of these materials. © 2017 by HW Media, LLC • All rights reserved

Jacob Gaffney Editor-in-Chief @jacobgaffney

TWEETS FROM THE STREET #TaxReform is the single most important thing we can do to grow our economy. #Jobs Rob Portman @senrobportman HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 7

DEC ’17 / JAN ’18 42 2017 VANGUARDS These 45 dynamic leaders are revolutionizing the housing industry. By Caroline Basile

68 ON THIN ICE Find out how expanded HMDA reporting represents new risks for lenders. By Sarah Wheeler

WHEN FACEBOOK MEETS FICO Harnessing the power of alternative data By Mike Hammer and Debbie Hoffman

74 TRAILBLAZERS We profile seven companies and their strategies for success in 2018.

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 9

CONTENTS 16 THE LINEUP 14 HOT SEAT Mike McFadden of Alight talks about the importance of strategic decision making.

16 PEOPLE MOVERS Mike Roemer joins Wells Fargo and Suzy Lindblom moves to Planet Home Lending.

18 EVENT CALENDAR The NEXT Conference, a tech-focused event for female executives, kicks off in Dallas.

18 32

19 ON THE SHELF What are the CIA, the FBI and foreign governments doing at America’s elite universities?

20 DISPATCH 1

VIEWPOINTS

Altisource leverages its end-toend product suite for mortgage servicers.

28 CHALLENGES

22 DISPATCH 2

Ron Terwilliger and Rick Lazio discuss creating an effective national housing policy.

Accenture reimagines the asa-service model to give lenders first-mover advantage.

30 THE GREAT DIVIDE

24 DISPATCH 3

Casey Cunningham explores how to develop the next generation of top producers.

Optimal Blue continues to refine secondary market automation for lenders.

32 THE UNEXPECTED

26 DISPATCH 4

Jim Jorgensen discusses the benefits of an enterprise risk management framework.

New American Funding invests in mobile options to appeal to Millennials, minority borrowers.

TWEETS FROM THE STREET Canadian oil really just wants to escape Canada. by Bloomberg @business

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 11

CONTENTS 84 BACK DEPARTMENTS 84 CAMPAIGN CIRCUIT Julián Castro looks ready for a presidential bid, while Cordray remains coy on his Ohio run.

88 KUDOS RealKey launches universal mortgage and real estate automation software.

90 KNOWLEDGE CENTER

88 TWEETS FROM THE STREET Donald Trump has 42.4m Twitter followers, making him the 21st most popular account on the platform by The Economist @TheEconomist

ServiceLink Auction addresses efficiency and transparency issues in the default process.

KNOWLEDGE CENTER

CoreLogic outlines the steps for estimating accurate property tax amounts.

94 KNOWLEDGE CENTER Ellie Mae lays out six things to look for in loan origination systems in its CIO Buyer’s Guide.

96 KNOWLEDGE CENTER

Stewart Title Guaranty clarifies the different options for eClosings in its guide for lenders and title agents.

98 Q&A

VRM CoreLogic

100 COMPANIES/ PEOPLE INDEX 101 AD INDEX 102 PARTING SHOT

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 13

HOTSEAT

SPONSORED CONTENT

Mike McFadden Group Head, Alight Mortgage Solutions Alight

hen we heard that Mike McFadden, one of the key executives at Stonegate Mortgage, was making the move to the world of high tech to take the helm of Alight Mortgage Solutions, we were intrigued and wanted to hear more. We sat down with Mike to talk about his goals for Alight Mortgage Solutions, not the least of which is bringing Alight to the desk of every mortgage banking executive in the U.S. HousingWire: You joined Alight Mortgage Solutions after a very successful career at Stonegate Mortgage. What made you want to work with Alight and what was that transition like? MIKE MCFADDEN: I've been a fan of the Alight team and the Alight Mortgage Lending application since they got started. In fact, I think I was their second customer! From the beginning, I saw that —through Alight — mortgage industry executives could transform how key financial decisions are made and, in turn, transform how they run their businesses. There are some big differences between running a publicly-traded mortgage banking firm with over a thousand employees and leading a nimble, high-tech startup. One thing I’m really enjoying is the speed with which we can move and get things done. For example, we recently sent a survey to our customers asking for their ideas about new features and within a day processed some very valuable feedback. And because of our agile structure, we were able to incorporate some of the feedback and deliver it to our entire customer base within two weeks. That’s very satisfying and incredibly beneficial to our customers.

Q&A

HW: One of the things you’re charged with in your role as Group Head is customer success. What does that look like as a former customer? MM: The mortgage industry is in a state of constant 14 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

change and to help our customers succeed in that environment, we need to be part of ensuring they’re ready for whatever comes their way. The next priority we’re focusing on is expanding the services we offer customers. My goal for 2018 is to be the first call our customers make when considering their most strategic and critical business decisions. We have an amazing depth of mortgage banking knowledge and talent, and I want Alight Mortgage Solutions to be known as the advisory firm that’s supercharged by an amazing technology platform. That's the part of the business that I'm really excited about growing. HW: What do you see as some of the biggest challenges mortgage industry companies will face in 2018? MM: The biggest challenge for every mortgage banker is the same year in and year out: the unknown. Mortgage bankers are always trying to get ready for the huge shifts that they know are coming, but can’t quite see. Everyone’s been looking for that elusive crystal ball and finally, thanks to Alight, I believe they can have one. We help our customers prepare for any outcome – we enable mortgage executives to have not just one plan, but a plan A, B, C, and beyond. Alight customers can focus on early indicators and the actions to take if and when interest rates do rise. Therefore, with Alight, they can be ready for any change in rates and understand the financial impact of those changes across their enterprise – before it happens. That’s revolutionary stuff. HW: How will Alight meet those challenges? MM: First, I firmly believe that every mortgage banking firm needs a solution like Alight. When you use Alight, your decision making improves a hundredfold – that’s something every firm, of any size, can benefit from. We’re doing something that no one else can do. We offer customers an aggregated financial planning solution that integrates with their core systems — G/L, HR, LOS and capital markets — and brings all that rich information together so that it can be used to make confident, forward-looking financial decisions. Add to that our team of top mortgage industry talent and you have an unbeatable solution. The opportunity is huge and I am very excited about the future.

Mike Roemer Wells Fargo

16 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

KEY

LINDBLOM WILLIAMS

HOPKINS SHERMAN

IGI TA L mortgage software provider Maxwell announced the addition of Scott Stein as the company’s new vice president of sales and business development. Stein joins Maxwell from Roostify, where he was vice president of sales. Earlier in his career, he also served as vice president of sales at Mercury Network. M o r t g a g e te c h n olo g y p r o v i d e r Informative Research has named Renae Sherman as the company's vice president of business development and innovation. Sherman brings more than 20 years of experience to the position and most recently served as the director of mortgage data strategy and business development for Experian. New American Funding recently appointed Scott Bristol to serve as the company’s senior vice president and national sales manager. Bristol comes to NAF from PrimeLending, where he served as president. During Bristol’s eight-year tenure at PrimeLending, he helped grow the company into a Top 10 lender in purchase units nationwide.

STEVENS

BRISTOL ROSENTHAL

Wells Fargo has named financial services veteran Mike Roemer as its new chief compliance officer. Roemer, who most recently served as group head of compliance at Barclays, will join the company in January 2018 and will be based in San Francisco.

The National Association of Mortgage Brokers officially named former president-elect John Stevens as its new president. Stevens joined the industry back in 2009 and has held board positions with NAMB since 2012. He has also been involved in the Utah County Planning Commission, and is actively involved in numerous state and local community efforts. East2West Valuation Services, a women-owned nationwide appraisal management company, recently named Debbie Key as its new CEO, bringing more than two decades of mortgage experience to the position. Key has worked in all parts of the mortgage process from production to the executive level. Most recently, Key was the senior vice president of operations at Consolidated Analytics, focusing on appraisal management. Assurant, a risk management solutions provider, announced recently that Assurant Mortgage Solutions, the company’s mortgage arm, hired Marc Connelly as national sales director. In this

role, Connelly will focus on growing the title and origination valuations product lines for Assurant. He joins Assurant from McDonnell and Associates, a multi-state general practice law firm with a focus on real estate law, title development and settlement services, where he was executive vice president of business development. Mortgage company SD Capital Funding has added Melissa Williams as head of mortgage operations. She joins the company from Quicken Loans, where she served as a senior purchase specialist for three years. The Mortgage Bankers Association has named Laura Hopkins as director of strategic member relations. Hopkins brings more than 15 years of experience to the position, most recently as senior vice president sales and marketing of VidVerify. Movement Mortgage has added Ryan Rosenthal as regional builder manager for the California and Hawaii markets. Rosenthal joins Movement Mortgage from HomeBridge Financial Services, where he was division builder manager. Planet Home Lending has added Suzy Lindblom to serve as the company’s chief operating officer for fulfillment. Lindblom, a 2015 HousingWire Woman of Influence, joins Planet Home Lending from Stearns Lending, where she was managing director, national fulfillment and operations. The Federal Reserve Board has announced the appointment of James Clouse as its new secretary for the Federal Open Market Committee, effective Nov. 26. Clouse will be responsible for producing minutes and transcripts of FOMC meetings as well as continuing as deputy director of the board’s division of monetary affairs.

EVENT CALENDAR

NEXT CONFERENCE JANUARY 18-19, 2018 Host: NEXT Location: InterContinental Hotel, Dallas, Texas Cost: $795-$1,295 On the agenda: The NEXT Conference is a tech-focused mortgage industry event for women executives focused on driving optimal business outcomes. The conference features opportunities to network with industry professionals. Attendees can check out informative sessions with speakers such as Tiana Laurence, co-founder of blockchain company Factom, Fannie Mae Director of Technology Tracy Stephan and Mary Ann McGarry, president and CEO of Guild Mortgage. 18 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

DALLAS, TEXAS Just a few minutes from the conference hotel is one of Dallas’ premier restaurant areas. Belt Line Road in Addison boasts a variety of restaurants guaranteed to satisfy anyone’s tastes. Ramen Hakata is a cozy, inviting Japanese restaurant that serves tonkotsu ramen, a dish that originated in Fukuoka, Japan. Belt Line Road is also home to SoHo Food and Jazz, which offers a seafood-driven dinner menu and tapas accompanied by live jazz nightly. Looking for dessert? Check out Boba Tea & Treats. ramenhakata.com sohofooddrinksandjazz.com bobateatreats.com

ON THE SHELF Spy Schools: How the CIA, FBI, and Foreign Intelligence Secretly Exploit America's Universities DANIEL GOLDEN HENRY HOLT & CO.

Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Daniel Golden reveals how globalization has transformed U.S. higher education into a front line for international spying. In labs, classrooms, and auditoriums, intelligence services from countries like China, Russia, and Cuba seek insights into the U.S., its policies and more. The FBI and CIA reciprocate, tapping international students and faculty to be informants. In Spy Schools, Golden uncovers shocking campus activity, from the CIA placing agents undercover in Harvard Kennedy School classes and staging academic conferences to persuade Iranian nuclear scientists to defect, to a Chinese graduate student at Duke University stealing research for an invisibility cloak.

Leonardo da Vinci WALTER ISAACSON SIMON & SCHUSTER

Based on thousands of pages from da Vinciâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own notebooks and new discoveries about his life and work, acclaimed author Walter Isaacson weaves a narrative that connects da Vinciâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s art to his science. Isaacson, who also authored books on Albert Einstein and Steve Jobs, shows how the genius of this most famous inventor and artist was based on skills we can improve in ourselves, such as passionate curiosity, careful observation, and an imagination so playful that it flirted with fantasy.

ALTISOURCE | SPONSORED CONTENT

Uncertain times call for the proven experience of a trusted industry leader Altisource leverages end-to-end product suite for mortgage servicers

hange is the new normal in the mortgage servicing landscape. The financial crisis firmly established a local, state and federal framework for increased regulation and oversight. While newly enacted rules offered additional protections for borrowers and taxpayers, they also created a more complex and challenging environment for servicers, driving up their costs. Additional regulatory changes may be on the horizon with the new administration, but the final outcome is still unknown. Some industry analysts anticipate a rollback while others expect continuity of the current approach. Whatever the outcome, servicers must be ready to observe an ever-evolving set of complex guidelines while origination and servicing volumes continue to grow. Altisource believes in staying a step ahead of the industry’s constantly changing needs — with solutions from real estate, mortgage and technology services to specialized offerings to support FHA loans. By leveraging our end-to-end product suite, combined with innovative technology, we’re able to help improve controls and mitigate risk throughout the lifecycle of servicing your portfolio. Our approach is distinguished by:

capabilities to create bundled services directed to solve complex problems. Today, Altisource continues to grow its servicer solutions product suite, increasing its offerings to existing clients and significantly expanding its client base.

PROVEN EXPERIENCE

Altisource brings together a robust auction process and our powerful market presence as a residential real estate leader to support our customers while seeking out new ways to maximize revenue. Our customized solutions scale easily and offer support for REO and short sale asset management, Claims Without Conveyance of Title (CWCOT) auction services, plus a bundled offering to help manage FHA assets. “We are deeply committed to customizing our mortgage and real estate solutions to the unique needs of our customers to help them get results fast,” said Joe Davila, president of servicer solutions at Altisource.

Altisource brings together some of the most experienced leaders in the financial and mortgage industries. With their knowledge, we’ve developed leading-edge products and technology solutions that help meet the needs of a very diverse client base.

COMMITMENT TO INNOVATION Our infrastructure enables us to leverage enterprise-wide

OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE Through our deep investment in products, technology and controls, along with an unwavering commitment to quality service, we’ve developed integrated solutions that help our customers manage risk so they can remain competitive and focus on growing their client base. “Our solutions leverage company-wide capabilities combined with extensive industry experience, a compliance and control environment, along with innovative technology and data analytics, enabling us to deliver inventive approaches which help our clients monitor and mitigate risk exposure while improving their bottom-line results,” said John Vella, chief revenue officer at Altisource.

CUSTOMIZED SOLUTIONS

SERVICER SOLUTIONS Leading financial institutions are choosing Altisource Servicer Solutions:* • REO and Short Sale Asset Management • Field Services and Renovation • Title Insurance and Settlement Services • Brokerage • Online Real Estate Marketplace • Property Valuations • Default Technology • CWCOT and Foreclosure Auction Services *Several leading financial institutions ranked by U.S. assets use at least one Altisource servicer solution. 20 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

ACCENTURE | SPONSORED CONTENT

As-a-Service: Your fast pass to digital mortgage Accenture reimagines the as-a-service model to give lenders first-mover advantage

ortgage lenders are moving as quickly as possible toward the digital mortgage. For the new generation of homebuyers, digital lending means ease of use and digital communication methods. To the industry, it means all of that and more, including electronic closing, filing and document recording. The result is a new virtual land rush that we wrote about in a new white paper that is available now. We assert that the institutions that stake their claim first in the mind of the consumer will have first mover advantage in the new mortgage market. Digital lending is the new requirement, but there’s a fast pass available to lenders who want to get there now.

THE VALUABLE BENEFITS OF MAKING THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION Accenture research indicates 87% of consumers begin their home buying experience online and expect their lender to deliver on digital expectations seen across other areas of their consumers lives. With companies like Uber, Spotify, NETFLIX and Amazon setting the standard for the customer’s online experience, lenders are driven to meet that standard. Lenders also benefit from the transformation because digital will finally put cross-sell objectives within reach. Most banks achieve only 10-20% cross sell of a mortgage product to their retail bank customer base. A digital process gives lenders access to first- and third-party data that will make prospecting and cross selling easier. In addition, the digital mortgage will bring down costs. Accenture has found that a digital interaction model can cut costs by 30%, while reducing human errors and risk.

GETTING PAST WHAT’S HOLDING MOST LENDERS BACK There are a number of hurdles still in the path of the lender, some of which will require outside support to clear. Perhaps chief among these is technology, which is changing fast and remains very expensive. Most firms do not have the internal information technology resources to capitalize on the promise of digital lending. The digital mortgage transformation will also require the lender to build and maintain connections directly to outside platforms. Payroll providers, credit repositories and third-party analytical engines will be required to return pre-approvals quickly and meet customer expectations. Another hurdle is trained staff. While the industry is calling the new online, consumer-friendly lending process "the digital mortgage," and while much of the data involved is gathered, stored and processed electronically, in most cases there are still a great many humans behind the scenes doing work that consumers assume is automated. 22 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

A digital process gives lenders access to first- and third-party data that will make prospecting and cross selling easier. WHY AS-A-SERVICE IS THE BEST OPTION FOR MOST LENDERS It is possible to get end-to-end digital lending as a service using the same model many firms have been using to meet their software needs for many years. The transition to digital will require a new breed of as-a-Service, offering: The right people The digital lending process of today – and likely tomorrow – will still require expert human resources to operate it. Even with the best technology, the machine cannot be expected to run itself in a business as complicated as home finance. The right process That digital lending process itself will also be part of the offering, as technology alone cannot warrant the lender will meet the high expectations of borrowers and regulators. A proven process will be required that can meet the highest standards for digital commerce, while still achieving full regulatory and investor compliance. Focus on the technology No part of the modern mortgage lending enterprise functions well without good technology and this offering will be no different. It will include software, to be sure, but unlike the past, that software may not come from just one company. It will more likely be a collection of best-of-breed tools that when combined will enable the required processes. Focus on compliance assurance The final result must come with a warranty of full compliance, from a company with a balance sheet that can back it up. This new as-a-Service offering is available now and offers lenders a single solution, the delivery of a digital mortgage. The service takes the lender’s customer from application to close and the mortgage asset on to the secondary market. Industry leaders must make the digital transformation to remain relevant to home loan borrowers, but they must do so quickly with limited resources and a very low tolerance for risk. Accenture’s Mortgage & Compliance-as-a-Service, is as-a-Service reimagined for a digital world.

OPTIMAL BLUE | SPONSORED CONTENT

Optimal Blue's innovative tech development results in record growth The company continues to refine secondary market automation for lenders

ptimal Blue’s significant investment in developing and deploying comprehensive secondary market automation propelled the company’s growth in the first half of 2017, netting a 21% increase in new clients. The company released a number of new enhancements to its end-to-end technology this year, including a market share analytics solution, a business intelligence tool and a social media compliance solution. It also launched capabilities that integrate mortgage technology systems across the industry. Through its highly scalable API interface platform, lenders can easily integrate compliant product and pricing content with the leading third-party technology and service providers they rely upon for lead generation, CRM, consumer-direct, mobile, LOS and more. With Optimal Blue solutions, lenders can automate their entire secondary marketing function and interact seamlessly with the industry’s largest network of leading investors, all through a single, unified platform. “The competitive mortgage industry landscape comes with numerous complex challenges, and our goal is to enable customers to manage and conquer those challenges as simply and as efficiently as possible,” said Scott Happ, CEO of Optimal Blue. Optimal Blue’s Digital Mortgage Marketplace connects originators, investors and providers and the company continues to forge strategic partnerships with other mortgage tech providers, such as Roostify and Easy Mortgage Apps. In May, Optimal Blue 24 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

announced its acquisition of Comergence, a provider of due diligence automation and ongoing surveillance services. “Optimal Blue and Comergence are well-aligned around our principal mission of facilitating transactions between buyers and sellers of loans,” Happ said. “Comergence solutions help build trust and confidence among marketplace participants by verifying third-party compliance in real-time, a capability unmatched in the industry.” The Comergence acquisition was one more milestone in the company’s ultimate two-pronged mission: to enable originators to automate their entire secondary marketing operation, from content through commitment; while enabling investors and leading providers to accelerate the loan origination process by leveraging automated data exchange, streamlined value delivery, robust innovations and actionable business intelligence. The market response to Optimal Blue’s development and acquisition of cutting-edge solutions had been dramatic, with record customer growth and adoption this year. The company’s Digital Mortgage Marketplace already touches one of every four mortgage loans in the U.S., and Optimal Blue is poised to continue that growth with its commitment to innovation. “I am thrilled to welcome so many new customers to Optimal Blue, and I’m equally honored that they’ve entrusted our secondary marketing solutions to further automate their operation and successfully accomplish their technology and business goals,” Happ said.

NEW AMERICAN FUNDING | SPONSORED CONTENT

New American Funding's investment in tech pays off for loan officers Millennials and minority borrowers take advantage of company's mobile options

he wave of Millennials now entering the housing market is fundamentally changing the way mortgage companies have to operate. Forty-three percent of new homebuyers are already in this age group, and those numbers are only going to continue to grow. “Millennials are unlike other generations — they expect to do things differently,” Rick Arvielo, president of New American Funding, contends. “A lot of companies have focused on the loan application process, but the changes have to go much farther than that to really serve this market.” New American Funding has been developing its own technology for years, a natural result of Arvielo’s passion to innovate the process beyond what was available. In the early 2000s, few loan officers were interested in how tech could make their business better. Today, New American Funding’s deep technical expertise is a clear differentiator for loan officers who want to grow. For example, the company offers a whole set of mobile apps for LOs that provide a complete back-office organization so that they can conduct business on the road with their client base. “The LOs don’t have to run to the office to run a borrower’s credit, or send a prequalification letter or approve the loan because they can do it all through the app,” Arvielo said. “The app gives them total transparency so that they can see who is working on the loan and communicate with service providers on the app all over the U.S.” New American Funding also has a complementary app for real estate agents. This mobility means loan officers can work with real estate partners and borrowers in the field and serve them in real time. And that cooperation benefits both real estate agents and loan officers as they deliver an experience that builds borrower loyalty. Collaborating like this is especially important in competitive housing markets, where fast action by all parties can make the difference in a borrower submitting the winning offer. But the value doesn’t stop there. New American Funding merges its tech with its marketing prowess to extend real-time, relevant marketing to the borrower before, during and after the loan transaction closes. This marketing can be co-branded with LOs and real estate agents so they can expand their online presence. It also prompts borrowers to write reviews of their experience. “Obtaining a customer review is the single most important thing a loan officer can do to extend their personal brand, especially when interacting with the Millennial subset of the market,” Arvielo said. “To me, the 5-star review is like the Holy Grail, and we generate 4- to 5-star reviews on 58% of the loans we close. Our process helps our loan officers build a presence on the Internet so

26 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

when they are googled they can highlight the fantastic feedback they get from clients.” This proactive review process also ensures that when borrowers don’t have a great experience, it gets resolved right away by New American Funding’s customer service department. The company prioritizes these borrowers, taking quick action to solve any potential issues. Another part of the marketing process talks to borrowers about the importance of providing reviews for valued services they receive. When reviews come in, New American Funding’s system automatically shares to social channels for the loan officers. As a result, “We have LOs with more than 100 positive reviews.” Arvielo said. New American Funding’s investment in technology yields a wholly different result than companies that deploy tech but do it in silos. “We don’t want loan officers to have to go in and out of four or five systems to get anything done. My philosophy is that I would rather take an extra year and integrate the technology than just go with off-the-shelf solutions that are completely unrelated to what they already have,” Arvielo said. “We’ve been doing this for 15+ years, so our foundation is very mature and our goal is to incorporate technology that is very cohesive for what they are doing.” One critical benefit of New American Funding’s tech expertise is the way it opens up avenues to new borrowers. Whereas some households do not have access to the Internet through desktops or laptops, the proliferation of smartphones enables an easier connection for these potential borrowers. “Everybody has a mobile phone, and there is so much pent-up demand in this segment,” Arvielo said. “Millennials and minorities are the biggest waves in lending, and mobile reaches both. We are happy to serve these segments, which are only getting larger.”

VIEWPOINTS

By Jacob Gaffney

What are the biggest challenges facing the housing industry today? Ron Terwilliger and Rick Lazio weigh in on tax reform and high rent burdens

The J. Ronald Terwilliger Foundation for Housing America’s Families’ signature event, the Housing America’s Families Forum, took place on Nov. 15. Ahead of that event, HousingWire sat down with Ron Terwilliger, founder and chairman of the Foundation, and Rick Lazio, a former U.S. representative from New York, to discuss the challenges in today’s housing market. HousingWire was a media partner for the Forum. HousingWire: How would you rate our nation’s housing policy? Ron Terwilliger: Truth be told, we don’t 28 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

have a coherent, strategic national housing policy. If there is a policy, it can be found in our spending priorities. The federal gov-

ernment spends about $200 billion annually on housing, most of it through the tax code. About 70% of this $200 billion supports higher-income homeowners through tax expenditures like the mortgage interest deduction. Approximately 30% benefits renters, who have median incomes about half that of homeowners. Support for renters primarily occurs through the congressional appropriations process. Tax reform provides the opportunity to adjust and rebalance these priorities. When you have limited funds, I believe

Jacob Gaffney is Editor-in-Chief of HousingWire.

our focus should be to help those families who need help the most – that’s primarily lower-income renters who live on the economic margins. We will see how tax reform plays out. If there are savings generated through modifications to tax expenditures like the mortgage interest deduction, it is critical these savings remain in the housing account to meet urgent housing needs. HW: So, how would you describe an effective national housing policy? RT: An effective housing policy responds not only to today’s conditions but also anticipates the conditions that are likely to shape and define the housing market in the foreseeable future. Over the next decade, I see three main trends affecting housing demand. First, the United States is becoming increasingly diverse. The Urban Institute projects that minorities will account for 88% of new household growth from 2020 to 2030. Unfortunately, two minority groups – African-Americans and Hispanics – historically have lower incomes and homeownership rates than other groups. At least initially, most of these new minority households will seek housing in rental homes. Second, like many other industrialized countries, the United States is becoming older with the aging of the 75 million Baby Boomers. By 2030, more than one in five Americans will be a senior, up from less than 10% in 1970. Seeking to simplify their lives, many older Americans will downsize from homeownership into rental homes that don’t require the same level of upkeep and maintenance. Third, a large percentage of our workforce is in the service industry, a fact that is unlikely to change anytime soon. The American Enterprise Institute estimates that service and line workers account for 38% of the overall workforce and earn wages that average just $26,000 annually. That means these workers can afford a monthly rent of just $650, using the 30%-of-income affordability standard. I can assure you there aren’t many apart-

ments in the market with rents that low. As I see it, these three trends mean that rental demand, already intense, will grow even stronger. We need to really ramp up our efforts through tools like the LowIncome Housing Tax Credit to produce enough affordable rental homes to meet this demand. HW: What do you hope to accomplish at the Housing America’s Families Forum on November 15? RT: The forum is an opportunity for all elements of the broader housing community to come together, share experiences, learn from each other, and become even stronger advocates for affordable housing. The forum is taking place in Detroit, a city that has suffered its share of blows over the years but has now turned the corner. Today, home prices in Detroit are rising, neighborhoods are being revitalized, the downtown area is attracting new businesses, and the city’s population has stabilized after years of decline. My hope is that those attending the forum will leave Detroit with the same can-do attitude that seems to be permeating the Motor City. HW: What do you consider the most significant challenge in housing today? Rick Lazio: As I see it, high rent burdens are the No. 1 challenge. More than 11 million families spend in excess of 50% of their income just on rent. The demand for affordable rentals far exceeds available supply. It’s true the production of new multifamily rental homes has really picked up in recent years. But most of this activity is taking place at the higher end of the market. From 2005 to 2015, the number of homes renting for less than $800 actually declined by more than 260,000 as the overall rental stock increased by 6.7 million units. What’s underappreciated is the impact of high rent burdens on the homeownership market. Millions of Millennials are forming households and opting for rental housing. While many hope to own a home someday, high rents are making it very difficult to save for a mortgage down

payment. This factor – along with student loan debt, a lack of affordable inventory, and regulatory policies – are frustrating the aspirations of potential first-time homebuyers. HW: How is Washington responding? RL: Fortunately, it appears the Congress is beginning to appreciate the scope and impact of America’s rental affordability crisis. Most notably, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., have introduced legislation increasing federal support for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit by 50%. Enacting this legislation is of critical importance to help reduce the shortfall in affordable rentals. I’m very pleased the “Big Six” tax reform framework retains the Low Income Housing Tax Credit. This is a remarkable achievement: only two tax credits in the entire tax code were singled out for protection. One was the Housing Credit. The housing community has done a great job educating Congress, particularly congressional Republicans, about the effectiveness of the credit in supporting the production and preservation of affordable rental homes. There are other positive signals. Rep. Joe Crowley, D-N.Y., a top House Democrat, recently introduced legislation that would establish a new renter’s tax credit to provide “demand-side” relief for low- and moderate-income families who struggle with high rents. Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Reps. Bruce Poliquin, R-Maine, and Denny Heck, D-Wash., have introduced the “National Month for Renters” resolution, which recognizes the severity of the rental affordability crisis. More recently, a bipartisan group of Senators asked the U.S. Government Accountability Office to assess the economic and social impact of the dissatisfactory conditions in housing, including the cost of failing to take action in response. All these are positive steps. They show that many in Congress recognize that housing should be a priority focus. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 29

VIEWPOINTS

By Casey Cunningham

Bridging the great generational divide How to develop the next generation of top producers

Our industry is at a crossroads. As our most experienced mortgage professionals enter into retirement, who will fill in the gap? The time has come to hire new talent. If the mortgage industry is to move forward, it will be because new professionals step into the roles that a retiring salesforce are leaving vacant. However, taking a chance on a “rookie” loan officer can be risky. Today’s great loan officers have extensive industry knowledge, excellent customer relationships, and a predictable pipeline of business. These are attributes that a new 30 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

originator won’t fully possess their first day on the job. If new loan officers are to have successful careers and achieve incredible production, managers and leaders must empower them to reach their full potential.

For our industry to enter into the next era, we need an intentionally developed salesforce. The future of the mortgage business will be built with new sales professionals that are properly trained and effectively assimilated into the market.

Casey Cunningham is the CEO and Founder of XINNIX, the top mortgage academy in the nation. Based in Alpharetta, Georgia, XINNIX provides nationally recognized sales and leadership performance programs.

TRAIN TO BE A TOP PRODUCER FROM DAY ONE New loan officers come into the business with very little knowledge of the industry or a limited understand of what the job requires. If they are going to succeed, there must be a development plan that gives them the necessary base of knowledge and a strategy for how to implement it. Excellent plans for development consist of three different phases: mastering essential mortgage knowledge, putting the knowledge into practice and building a pipeline of business. 1. Master essential knowledge. Starting out, new loan officers need to learn the language of the industry in terms of understanding mortgage terminology and mortgage math, loan products and the steps for pre-qualifying borrowers. And of course, they will need to have a comprehensive knowledge of regulations, guidelines, and compliance standards. 2. Put it in practice. Once a loan officer has mastered these essentials, they need practical training on how to confidently speak with customers, understand deal structure, and take complete loan applications. This includes knowing how to comfortably handle objections and profile their borrowers so they can develop a more effective relationship. This is the phase in which they should be able to take the core knowledge they learned as their foundation and apply it to real world case studies and scenarios. Essentially, they need to know the day-to-day fundamental practices of being a loan officer. 3. Build a pipeline. Lastly comes the actual implementation of everything they have learned so far. In this learning phase, new loan officers should begin building their customer pipelines. In order to do this quickly and effectively, they should be exposed to a wide variety of business development strategies, such as maximizing leads from networking events, building a database, leveraging social media, utilizing sales scripts, and creating an initial business plan. A successful new loan officer should know how to comfortably develop referral

partners, overcome personal call reluctance, and develop the discipline to prospect daily. SET CLEAR EXPECTATIONS If you want your new loan officers to start rapidly building their pipeline, establish clear expectations for performance. Managers can set a minimum goal for the number of meetings new originators should attend and calls they should make. An example would be setting an expectation of five face-to-face appointments each week and 10 prospecting calls each day. The first 90 days of production are the most critical in determining a new loan officer’s success. The more success they experience upfront, the higher the chance of them having a prosperous mortgage career. During these first 90 days of production, loan officers and managers need to set a goal together to meet daily in order to provide guidance and accountability to the loan officer. This ensures that new originators are receiving what they need to train for success, and it gives managers the chance to see that they are doing what is necessary to complete their training. After the initial 90 days, move the meetings from daily to weekly. Even though they are gaining experience, new loan officers will still need assistance, and they still need to be held accountable. This weekly meeting should continue for a year. This may seem like a long assimilation time, but the more time a leader pours into their new loan officer, the better their results will be. And leaders build loyalty when a loan officer knows their manager is making a serious investment in them. Failing to properly assimilate a loan officer can lead to a lack of productivity or even to the loan officer leaving the organization for another one with better training and development. Put in the work to cultivate a strong salesperson who will stay with your company for years to come. THE POWER OF A MENTOR Every phase of training a new loan officer must be supplemented with mentoring and accountability from experienced pro-

fessionals. Training will be more effective when a seasoned mortgage professional is with them every step of the way, demonstrating how to put each concept into action. When a mentor and new loan officer combine their efforts, the results can be truly incredible. SHORTEN THE RUNWAY TO SUCCESS WITH RIDE-ALONGS One of the most effective ways managers can integrate themselves into their new loan officers’ training process is the ridealong. When new originators begin to go out of the office to have face-to-face meetings with referral sources or customers, the manager should accompany them on those calls. The presence of an experienced professional who has an existing relationship with the client will give them an easier introduction. In addition, the leader will have the chance to see your their rookie in action. The ride-along shortens the learning runway by providing immediate feedback and establishing good habits from the start. As new loan officers will be entering business conversations, managers should make sure their rookies have the confidence to articulate a compelling message, one that is in line with the vision of their company. Equipping them with the right script gives them a starting place for building a positive relationship. By providing them the best resources ahead of time, leaders set them up for a successful meeting and a successful career! As someone who has been developing top producing mortgage professionals for over 30 years, I have seen firsthand the importance of training, developing, and assimilating your new originators. You are investing in both their future and the future of your business. Instill in them the knowledge, strategies, and work ethic they need to come out of the gate as producing members of your salesforce. Make it your mission to avoid contributing to our industry’s high rookie dropout rate. Instead, set your new loan officers on the journey to become the next generation of top producers. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 31

VIEWPOINTS

By Jim Jorgensen

Preparing for the unexpected Getting in front of major risks through an enterprise risk management framework

In February 2006, Susan Schmidt Bies, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, gave a speech titled, “The Continuous Challenges of Risk Management.” It was a well-written speech on the importance of risk management in a growing and robust financial services market with its many new challenges. Her concluding remarks were extremely profound as she stated, “While most U.S. banking organizations enjoy substantial profitability today, they should remember success depends on their ability to prepare for unexpected, and potentially much less favorable, events and outcomes.” While directed at banks, her comments were very much applicable to the mortgage industry as well. It was not too long after this speech that our country and housing industry entered the Great Recession. 32 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Could lenders have avoided some of the pain from the housing crisis if they had better risk management practices? Very possibly. Effective risk management intends to alert senior management and board members of the critical risks that

will impact the organization’s profitability and competitiveness in the market. Is it complicated? Not necessarily, if you have a framework. One enterprise risk management framework that many U.S. financial services companies use is

Jim Jorgensen is CEO and founder of CrossCheck Compliance.

“Enterprise Risk Management – Integrating with Strategy and Performance”. The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) commissioned and published the framework in 2004 and updated it in June 2017. Today’s economic and regulatory environments continue to evolve, with more complexity and new risks emerging at a rapid pace. As a result, having a risk management process integrated into an organization is crucial. Senior management and the board need to ensure alignment of the organization’s strategies and objectives with the ERM system. It starts with a clear understanding of the organization’s risk appetite and an objective assessment of whether business goals and initiatives effectively consider and mitigate identified risks within the organization’s risk appetite. Paying attention to risk allows the company to be more resilient to change and proactively take advantage of the opportunities from changes in the marketplace. Most importantly for the ERM system to be effective, management must communicate its risk philosophy and appetite across the entire organization. Without the right culture and governance, even the best ERM system will fall short. Employees must know that management believes in the process and feel comfortable speaking up when they identify potential risks. Risks can come from many areas, both within the organization and in the market place, such as competitors, customers, and the government. What are the critical risks that organizations in the housing market must be aware of and prepared for? TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION RISKS New technologies and innovations are evolving at a rapid pace and can easily make the “old way” of conducting business in the housing industry obsolete. Customer expectations for convenience and speed of transactions have a tremendous impact on the industry. Meeting these expectations is necessary for survival. Increasingly, customers are insisting that they will only conduct business with

companies that provide easy access to social media, mobile and internet based applications. If an organization does not recognize and anticipate the risks brought by these shifts, it will lose existing customers and the ability to attract new customers. If an organization does not change and innovate, competitors will; resulting in significant loss of market share. DATA SECURITY RISKS In addition to the requirements brought on by the new technologies, ease of access and use has brought on risks related to the privacy and security of customers’ information. Controlling these risks is also critical to the survival and reputation of the organization. One breach in security can harm the company to the point of financial failure. Not having an effective and tested information security policy and plan exposes the company to a catastrophic event. Cyber threats and attacks, unfortunately, are a way of life in this new age of rapidly advancing technology where access can take place from anywhere in the world from almost any device. These attacks can hurt the organization in many ways, from theft of critical data to major disruption of critical systems. REGULATORY AND COMPLIANCE RISKS Regulatory changes and scrutiny from government regulators have resulted in a significant amount of added stress to the industry. The uncertain political environment further compounds these risks. While significant time and resources must be dedicated to compliance, those organizations that embrace and proactively address these regulatory changes have created a competitive advantage. Those that do not adapt may find themselves in the “headlines” as a result of enforcement actions and very heavy fines and penalties. Many of these regulations focus on either protecting the consumer from harm or assuring criminals are not using the financial system for their own benefit. It is good business to develop an effective compliance management process and mitigate these regulatory risks.

THIRD-PARTY RISKS As it seeks to streamline business and be more competitive, many in the housing industry are looking to outside vendors to perform many processes such as IT systems, underwriting, appraisals, loan document preparation, etc. The use of more outside vendors certainly increases risk to the organization contracting these outside entities to perform critical operations. While organizations can outsource various tasks and functions, the organization must realize they cannot outsource the responsibility for these tasks and functions. If something goes wrong with a vendor, customers and regulators will be looking to the organization to resolve the issue. Placing blame on the vendor will not be an acceptable solution to the problem. LENDING POLICY RISKS Both competitive pressures and potential increases in interest rates have the potential to impact financial risk. As organizations present new products to gain market share, they need to ask themselves “what if” questions about their potential assumptions regarding expected performance. For example, if implementation of looser underwriting guidelines potentially increases risk, what additional controls have been put in place to ensure that delinquencies do not go outside a targeted range? When an organization embraces risk as an opportunity, it can limit surprises and take advantage of future events for the benefit of the organization. Effective ERM allows organizations to review the company holistically and see the “big picture,” not just issues facing one area of the business. This will also allow the company to recognize that an issue in one area may have significant effects and consequences for other areas in the organization or for the organization in total. Understanding the risk allows organizations to place resources where they are needed. But most importantly, an effective ERM system allows the organization to thrive for the long-term and be prepared for the unexpected. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 33

When Facebook meets FICO Harnessing the power of alternative data

36 HOUSINGWIRE â?ą DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

BY MIKE HAMMER AND DEBBIE HOFFMAN

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 37

nderwriting is an incredibly important and complex piece of the lending industry. The secret sauce of underwriting, or the underwriting methodology, varies from lender to lender and is often a closely guarded secret. Lenders devote a tremendous amount of time and money to

hiring professionals and engaging vendors who can provide the right expertise in guiding them to achieve the perfect recipe. Increasingly important in underwriting is the use of “alternative data” – a variety of information about a prospective borrower that, while not directly related to credit, has proven to hold great predictive value. Using alternative data means a lot of data to sort through and find patterns. Accordingly, the latest advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning are put to work by lenders and data providers to get the most out of this data. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently indicated its consent to the use of alternative data in loan underwriting, thus making a stronger case that the use of such data points is here to stay. Furthermore, it is likely that the use of alternative data will increase as the computer algorithms behind it grow smarter and more powerful.

DEFINING ALTERNATIVE DATA The use of alternative data has been most prevalent in the smaller credit agencies, as opposed to Experian, Equifax, and Transunion (the Big Three), although Transunion has emerged as a leader when compared to its competitors. The smaller agencies, such as Clarity Services, CoreLogic and Factor Trust, focus primarily on the subprime consumer credit market which serves individuals whose files are often thin or nonexistent. This means that traditional credit reports would not provide a useful picture of a prospective borrower’s creditworthiness. Some products offered by these smaller agencies

A user’s mobile phone can provide enough information for identity verification, evaluation of more traditional credit data points like debt-to-income ratio. 38 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

are still primarily focused on credit data, and others provide specific kinds of alternative data. For example, CoreLogic’s SafeRent offers a product that tracks housing rental history. Milliman’s Intelliscript product focuses on prescription drug history. Lexis Nexis, among multiple data products, provides data on consumers’ loss history in personal property and auto insurance through its Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange, or C.L.U.E, report. ID Analytics, which offers reports used for identity verification purposes, is itself representative of the utility of alternative data. The company on its website describes its “ID Network” as “a unique cross-industry repository of near real-time consumer information.” This set of data incorporates disparate sources to, in the company’s example, provide insight into “[whether] an individual with no traditional credit history is low risk because of a great payment record on wireless phones and utilities.” SafeRent, Intelliscript, and C.L.U.E. have a clear role in their respective industries: a landlord can obviously find great utility in a collection of data that indicates the rental history of a prospective tenant. But ID Analytics demonstrates the power of assembling multiple disparate sources and, through data analytics, putting them together to create a greater whole that reveals additional insights – an approach increasingly favored by lenders in both the consumer and business lending spaces.

MACHINE LEARNING AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE As alternative data provides many new sources of data for a lender or an underwriter to examine, there is an increase in the amount of computing power needed to sift through and understand it all. This need is filled by machine learning, a subfield within the greater study of artificial intelligence. AI, according to Stanford computer

scientist professor John McCarthy, is when a computer is able to perceive its environment and perform tasks that achieve goals in that environment. Machine learning focuses on creating computer algorithms that are able to deduce patterns and use them to make predictions. The ultimate ramifications of machine learning on society are unknowable at this point, but the impact is already being seen in the world of lending and credit underwriting. The increase in processing power and reduction in storage costs have created an environment where these algorithms can ingest and process greater amounts of data and, through the learning process, refine their processing efficiency over time. Since the sets of data lenders use are vast and varied, machine learning is an integral part of turning all those data points into useful underwriting insights. The algorithm, forming new connections between this data and examining it at a deeper level than previously possible, is able to uncover groups of worthy borrowers that were ignored in the past.

LENDERS’ USE OF ALTERNATIVE DATA IN CONJUNCTION WITH TRADITIONAL CREDIT DATA On September 14, 2017, the CFPB granted its first no-action letter to Upstart, a personal lender who offers unsecured loans ranging from $1,000 to $50,000, with three- to five-year terms and for varied purposes including student loans and credit card refinancing. Upstart sought this no-action letter with regard to its underwriting model. Upstart’s description of the methodology behind this model in its request document to the CFPB reads as a prototypical example of the process and benefits of alternative data’s use in the lending space: By relying exclusively on the credit report and traditional modeling techniques, lenders ignore some of the most predictive information about potential borrowers… In Upstart’s view… traditional credit scores are simply one good predictor of loan repayment, and it believes that underwriters should use other variables as well. …By complementing (not replacing) traditional underwriting signals with others that are correlated with financial capacity as well as propensity to repay a loan, Upstart’s underwriting properly understands and quantifies risk associated with all borrowers— those with credit history, and those without. In the three and a half years since launching the loan products on the Upstart platform, our model has demonstrated strong performance and has improved across model versions. Upstart’s use of alternative data includes examining borrowers’ educational background, job history and

By relying exclusively on the credit report and traditional modeling techniques, lenders ignore some of the most predictive information about potential borrowers. field of employment. This favorable evaluation by the CFPB comes at a time when many other lenders are integrating alternative data into their own underwriting. The CFPB’s decision to issue the no-action letter was received favorably by the industry, though some were disappointed that the letter did not provide more explicit guidance to the industry at large. Kabbage is one such lender. It uses, in addition to traditional credit data, such sources as information about a borrower’s product shipments and social media. Kabbage has been successful in licensing its underwriting platform – which integrates the multiple, disparate sources of information into a holistic picture of a prospective borrower – to large banks such ING and Santander. Tala (formerly InVenture) makes small loans to borrowers in Kenya, Tanzania and the Philippines using the data found on a borrower’s mobile phone. A user’s mobile phone can provide enough information for identity verification, evaluation of more traditional credit data points like debt-to-income ratio, as well as alternative information such as other applications the borrower uses, location data and the borrower’s social network. Tala is a prime example of the HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 39

utility of alternative data in evaluating customers’ creditworthiness outside of the traditional credit report context. Many of the borrowers who obtain loans through Tala would undoubtedly have a thin or nonexistent file as viewed by a traditional lender using credit data alone. Tala’s inclusion of a variety of data into its underwriting has allowed it to make loans to a population that would likely be ignored by a traditional credit data-focused lender, with impressively high repayment rates. Kabbage and Tala use alternative data to achieve somewhat different ends. In Kabbage’s case this is a more holistic picture of applicants that nevertheless belong to a class already served by the lending industry, but that can benefit from the extra assurance provided to the lender by Kabbage’s underwriting model. Tala seeks to serve an entirely new borrower population, one likely to be ignored by an underwriting motel focused solely on credit. Both, however, integrate their alternative data points with traditional credit inquiries, creating a new whole greater than the sum of its parts. Market research indicates that many other companies seek to integrate alternative data for similar reasons. Factor Trust’s 2017 study of lenders and financial service providers found that the top three reasons lenders were looking into alternative data were expanding the universe of eligible borrowers, re-evaluating previously rejected borrowers, and making risk-based pricing more accurate. Factor Trust noted that these goals are best achieved by combining traditional with alternative data. The major credit analytic firm FICO appears to agree. In an August 29, 2017 blog post about the use of alternative data, “Using Alternative Data in Credit Risk Modeling,” FICO stated its findings that alternative data sources add predictive value when combined with traditional credit data. FICO’s research found that alternative data on its own is less valuable than traditional credit data for underwriting purposes, but the model created when alternative data was properly combined

Nonetheless, as the algorithms get stronger and faster, valuable patterns may emerge from this now underappreciated data, and the privacy and regulatory issues of incorporating this data would need to be addressed. 40 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

with traditional data was more predictive than traditional data alone.

RISKS OF ALTERNATIVE DATA As with all new technologies, the risks of alternative data must be kept in mind when considering its transformative power. One particularly salient risk, the one that inspired Upstart to seek its no-action letter from the CFPB, is possible discrimination. The heavy presence of machine learning in the world of alternative data and credit decisions means possibly transferring certain decisions from human to machine responsibility, and the unsettling possibility exists that the algorithms may focus on certain data points – or combine them in an unforeseen manner – ultimately resulting in disparate impact. Upstart, in its request document, limited the constraints of its request to compliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and its implementing regulation, Regulation B. Upstart cited uncertainty about the evolution of its underwriting model and changes to its pool of applicants over time as the reason for its request. General privacy concerns will also be important for companies to mitigate as alternative data grows in popularity and use. Even when a company’s actions are in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting and GrammLeach-Bliley Acts, there may still be a psychological hurdle on the part of consumers to overcome as more and more of what they do becomes a factor in their credit decisions. Calls for a European-style privacy regime of “opt in” rather than “opt out” may be more commonplace as more consumers become aware of the increasing amount of data points that define them. This is particularly the case for social media. Kabbage’s use of social media includes the option for borrowers to link their business’ social media accounts to their Kabbage account. Though linking an account is a predictor of lower likelihood of defaulting, Kabbage does not consider other social media data points like followers, posts or content. The August 2017 FICO blog noted that data from one’s social network profile holds little value because it is not as strongly connected to credit as other pieces of alternative data, and also because it is modifiable by the user. Nonetheless, as the algorithms get stronger and faster, valuable patterns may emerge from this now underappreciated data, and the privacy and regulatory issues of incorporating this data would need to be addressed.

Facebook itself has made what could be categorized as attempts to enter the world of alternative lending data. The Wall Street Journal reported that in 2014, Facebook executives met with several lenders and data providers, seeking to determine whether Facebook data could be of use to these firms in underwriting. Following that, in 2015, Facebook acquired a patent for assessing creditworthiness based upon the credit ratings of connections in the applicant’s social network. The regulatory hurdle is the most cited reason for Facebook’s continuing failure to move forward in this area. The Federal Trade Commission, for example, has issued guidance stating that a company like Facebook providing data used by other firms to underwrite or make credit decisions would turn that company into a credit reporting agency pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. It is likely that Facebook simply does not want this regulatory headache. It is interesting to consider what similar firms have done in other jurisdictions where the regulatory obligations are different. Baidu, China’s large search engine, has a financial services arm that, among other operations, makes unsecured consumer loans. Some of China’s other large tech firms – like Alibaba and Tencent – also have moved into the consumer financial services space. The Wall Street Journal attributes this move to the amount of data they collect and their ability to analyze this data in new ways to underwrite loans, such as analyzing a user’s search history or the online videos they watch. While it may be difficult for American consumers to imagine obtaining a loan from Facebook or Google, the Chinese companies’ solution may translate to a similar American firm in possession of a great deal of customer data. If Facebook is hesitant to incur the regulatory obligations of providing data to other companies, those obligations may be less if it were making the loans itself and keeping the data in-house. FCRA obligations are largely limited to either providing one’s own data to another entity (making them into a credit reporting agency under the law) or using reports provided by another entity (which creates the obligation to provide consumers with adverse action notices, for example). The FTC, in a 2016 report on “Big Data,” even stated clearly that the FCRA does not apply when a company is using its own data about its customers for purposes of making decisions (such as credit decisions) about them. Assuming the credit utility of their data becomes apparent, it is not difficult to imagine Facebook

While it may be difficult for American consumers to imagine obtaining a loan from Facebook or Google, the Chinese companies’ solution may translate to a similar American firm in possession of a great deal of customer data.

or Google forming or acquiring a lending arm and leveraging their vast stores of customer data to compete with other lenders in the space.

MOVING FORWARD While the regulatory risks are rightfully on the mind of legal and compliance professionals in the lending and underwriting industries, the use of alternative data has already proven useful to a variety of firms and there is no reason to expect that it will stop anytime soon. Incorporating data outside of the traditional credit data points has allowed lenders to better understand their current universe of borrowers and to make loans to them in a more educated manner. More importantly, users of alternative data can widen the group of eligible consumers for their products, particularly consumers who have traditionally been underserved. As concepts like “underbanked” and “unbanked” gain more and more recognition, lenders will increasingly turn to alternative data to capture this population. The recent high-profile data breach of Equifax, and related skepticism of the traditional power and role of the Big Three may even be setting the stage for more widespread adoption and acceptance of alternative data. It is clear that, for lenders, examination of credit data alone will not be enough to compete. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 41

2017 VANGUARDS 45 EX ECUTIV ES LEADING TH E H OUS I N G I N DUST RY

42 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Table of Contents Patty Arvielo.....................................................................................44 Rick Arvielo ....................................................................................... 45 Nate Baker......................................................................................... 45 Jay Bray...............................................................................................46 Sean Buckner....................................................................................46 John Cady............................................................................................47 Terrell Cassada..................................................................................47 Franklin Codel ..................................................................................48 Casey Crawford.................................................................................48 Alex Elezaj..........................................................................................49 Jason Frazier......................................................................................49 Dan Hanson.......................................................................................50 Mark Hikel...........................................................................................50 Brian Hughes...................................................................................... 51 Matt Humphrey................................................................................. 51 Brew Johnson.................................................................................... 52 Kyle Kamrooz.................................................................................... 52 Tawn Kelley........................................................................................ 53 Colleen Lambros.............................................................................. 53 Benjamin Madick..............................................................................54 Gary Malis...........................................................................................54 Mary Ann McGarry............................................................................ 55 Claudia Merkle.................................................................................. 55 Chad Mosley......................................................................................56

Ryan O’Hara.......................................................................................56 Stavros Papastavrou.......................................................................57 Jay Plum...............................................................................................57 Brad Rable..........................................................................................58 Mohammad Rashid.........................................................................58 Andrew Rippert................................................................................59 Barry Sando.......................................................................................59 Terry Schmidt....................................................................................60 Dave Sims...........................................................................................60 Steve Smith........................................................................................ 61 Scott Stoddard.................................................................................. 61 Crystal Sumner ................................................................................ 62 Gregory Teal....................................................................................... 62 Steve Thompson.............................................................................. 63 Joe Tyrrell........................................................................................... 63 John Vella...........................................................................................64 Jimmy Walby.....................................................................................64 Mike Weinbach.................................................................................. 65 Teresa Whitehead............................................................................ 65 Melinda Wilner..................................................................................66 Bruce Witherell.................................................................................66

2017

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 43

HERE’S WHAT IT TAKES TO SUCCESSFULLY LEAD NFL Coach Vince Lombardi once said, “Leaders are made, they are not born.” And he’s right. Hard work and perseverance through experiences, whether they

PATTY ARVIELO

are good or bad, help shape leadership.

PRESIDENT | NEW AMERICAN FUNDING

As 2017 wraps up and the mortgage industry faces a new year that will undoubtedly bring successes, as well as challenges, HousingWire is proud to present the 45 winners of our 2017 Vanguard award. These 45 leaders from all areas of the mortgage industry, from lending to servicing to real estate and investing, demonstrate that the industry is fluid and adept at meeting each challenge that comes its way. Although each of our Vanguard winners excels in a wide range of skill sets, from overseeing technological advancements to managing legal departments to lobbying for industry change, all share one common trait: the ability to lead, motivate and rally their employees. Each of them are outstanding leaders who utilize their resources to solve problems, create solutions and drive innovation in their respective areas in the industry. We are proud to share an industry space with each of these winners and pleased to honor the hard work they do. Read on to find out more about them…

“Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.” – Vince Lombardi

44 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Lending

S president of New American Funding, Patty Arvielo maintains a well-recognized leadership role in real estate and mortgage lending. She continues to originate, booking millions in home loans each month on her own, while managing operations and sales for the company’s headquarters, approximately 130 branches and more than 2,400 employees. This past year, Arvielo has increased the activity of her own Latino Focus initiative, an organization whose mission is to identify and address challenges Hispanic consumers face in their pursuit of homeownership. She also serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Consumer Affairs Advisory Council for the Mortgage Bankers Association, as well as frequently visiting Washington, D.C. to lobby on behalf of the industry and homeowners. In 2017, due to her vast industry background, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau appointed Arvielo to serve on its Consumer Advisory Board to provide the agency with expertise on a broad range of consumer financial matters and emerging market trends. Last year, Arvielo collaborated with Freddie Mac to establish and launch a unique mortgage pilot program, Your Path, which makes affordable homeownership opportunities available to a broader demographic of borrowers. Arvielo’s community involvement includes serving on the executive board of Big Brothers Big Sisters Orange County, where she has worked, through her board seat with BBBS, to bring a new mentorship program in house to New American Funding.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “The best career advice that I have ever received was to never burn bridges and always mend fences. In business, connections and relationships can have a major impact on your career so you should always be thoughtful of the future.”

2017 VANGUARDS

RICK ARVIELO

NATE BAKER

CEO | NEW AMERICAN FUNDING

CEO | QUALIA

Lending

Real Estate

S CEO of New American Funding, Rick Arvielo has used his marketing and technology expertise to continuously grow the company. The company maintains a servicing portfolio of more than $20 billion and funds about $1 billion in loans per month, up from $900 million per month last year. Current industry trends make New American Funding’s growth even more notable. This year, New American Funding continues its expansion across the U.S., including Illinois, Missouri, Georgia and Texas. The mortgage banker hired top talent to increase its efforts in Northern California and made headway by opening new branches in the Midwest and Southeast regions. NAF is positively impacting these new communities, helping more individuals get into their dream homes by offering affordable mortgages. Arvielo is involved in several member associations that play a vital role in the current and future states of mortgage banking. He frequents Washington, D.C., to lobby on behalf of the industry and sits on the board of directors for the Mortgage Bankers Association, and on the group’s Residential Board of Governors. Arvielo also serves in an elected position on the steering committee for the Mortgage Action Alliance Committee and is the 2017-2018 chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association Political Action Committee. Arvielo’s motivation stems from a desire to help others and to create a legacy that he can be proud of. With New American Funding, he has been able to build a profitable enterprise, lead his team members to personal success, and help consumers achieve the American dream.

NDER co-founder and CEO Nate Baker’s leadership, real estate closing platform Qualia has successfully launched a platform centralizing the closing process and expanded its usage to thousands of title companies, lenders and brokers. Over the past 12 months, Baker was instrumental in scaling the business and achieving its impressive growth trajectory, extending the platform from 15 to 50 states. As part of this effort, Baker grew the company’s team from 20 to more than 60 people. To maintain the highest standards, Baker never wavered from his commitment to developing personal relationships with prospects, new hires and long-term employees. He believes this focus on hiring right for talent, culture and vision creates an atmosphere where everyone is engaged with the company’s mission and dedicated to creating a better real estate closing experience. “Together, we’re building the tools that empower closing teams that include title companies, lenders and brokerages. Everyone is so smart and so invested in being part of Qualia’s upward trajectory. We’re solving a massive coordination problem that has existed for years with real estate transactions which is no small task. We’re lucky to have an incredible team that genuinely enjoys working together to reimagine the closing process from the ground up.” Baker was integral in accelerating the company’s financial growth by securing funding from top venture capital firms including Formation 8 and Bienville Capital. Their economic support and technology industry insights have been invaluable to Qualia.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

WHAT’S HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“As an entrepreneur, I have achieved success in business because of my willingness to risk and overcome adversity. The challenges I have faced throughout my business career are what make the business world exciting, rewarding and worthwhile.”

“It’s our people. Together, we’re building the tools that emplower closing teams that include title companies, lenders and brokerages. Everyone is so smart and so invested in being part of Qualia’s upward trajectory.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 45

2017 VANGUARDS

JAY BRAY

SEAN BUCKNER

CEO | MR. COOPER

PRESIDENT AND CEO | INFORMATIVE RESEARCH

Servicing

VER the last year, Jay Bray has led Nationstar through a major transformation to become a customer-centric company with a new brand name for its mortgage servicing and originations operation – Mr. Cooper. Through this transformation, Bray has inspired the company to put customers first and for everyone on the team to act as advocates and champions for each customer. He has also encouraged team members to challenge convention in an industry that hasn’t seen much change. His inspiration has led to significant enhancements to the customer experience such as new, innovative technology, including an award-winning website and mobile app, to help customers become smarter homeowners. Under Bray’s leadership, the company has introduced new services designed to create a best-in-class home loan experience. Among those industry-leading services is a digital platform that introduces a new approach to business empowering customers with more information about their home investment and offering them the ability to self-serve. It’s also important to Bray that the company put people first. When it comes to customers, he decided to do something meaningful as the company heard feedback that customers would prefer to talk to representatives located in the United States. Bray and his team took this feedback to heart, and despite the investment, moved all off-shore customer service call center operations back to the U.S. Bray also prioritizes feedback he receives from employees, and as a result the company has instituted a revamped, flexible time-off policy.

Lending

INCE becoming president and CEO in 2013, Sean Buckner has made it possible for Informative Research to save the lending industry millions of dollars in credit expenses and to streamline the loan process for more than 3,000 mortgage lenders and their borrowers. For the past 39 years, Buckner has led Informative Research with the vision to modernize and digitize business in the mortgage space, creating solutions that positively impact both the lender and consumer experiences. Under his direction, Informative Research has seen organic growth of more than 30% annually for the last three years. Buckner’s approach to technology solutions has driven new, cost-effective products to the market within the last year, including SoftQual, which cuts the cost of a credit report almost in half for lenders. SoftQual is a more affordable mortgage-scored, mortgage trade-lined soft inquiry credit report that features either one or two FICO scores. Additionally, Buckner’s initiative to make the loan process even easier with IR’s Verification Bundle has proven to help lenders increase sales and save thousands of dollars thanks to the efficiency improvements and cost savings it provides. As compliance and data safety continue to be an overwhelming concern in the industry, Informative Research has also taken dramatic precautions to ensure that its security is best-in-class. With its Merge Logic and Buckner’s dedication to customer protection, Informative Research is the only provider in its space to achieve EI3PA and PCI certifications.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

“My secret to success is to not be afraid of change. I enjoy and actually thrive if there are multiple challenges and changes happening at the same time. That’s what keeps things interesting.”

“I was once told to learn how to practice quiet and contemplative listening. I didn’t really grasp the importance of that until I shifted into more leadership roles and received more responsibility over the years.”

46 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

JOHN CADY

TERRELL CASSADA

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT | MOUNTAIN WEST FINANCIAL

CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER | LOANLOGICS

Lending

EFORE John Cady joined Mountain West Financial, the company was primarily based in California and Cady’s primary focus was to not onlyincrease production , but also expand Mountain West Financial’s name throughout the Western United States. In the last two years, Cady has propelled the company forward, doubling production and expanding in nine new states. After Cady joined the company, MWF revamped its loan officer academy program. “This program provides the stepping stones to a bountiful career in our industry. The education and comprehensive training give them the tools and support to build a strong career foundation,” Cady said. The company recently saw its 250th loan officer graduate. The company took it one step further and created Base Camp, a coaching mechanism that helps the academy’s candidates and low-producing LOs learn accountability, sales technique and time management. “Accountability is all about numbers, from the number of business cards to pass out each day to the number of social media counts you have and more. We help build habits that will stay with the loan officer the rest of their career and are proud to have seen an increase of over 40% in production,” Cady added. Mountain West Financial has also rolled out a consumer direct division, a new TPO portal and revamped its core values within the last year in order to continue making homeownership a reality for the families in the company’s communities.

Lending

S CIO of LoanLogics, Terrell Cassada oversees software development for LoanLogics’ IDEA platform and document processing solutions, as well as the company’s technology infrastructure, cloud delivery and information security. From its early development, Cassada has served as the primary lead on LoanLogics’ innovative IDEA (Intelligent Data Extraction and Automation) platform, which has processed more than 236 million unique documents and extracted over 2 billion data elements. Documents are processed through the IDEA platform using both automation and human-based exception workflows, resulting in 99% data extraction accuracy. Prior to joining LoanLogics, Cassada provided management consulting services to the GSEs on FHFA mandated technology, as well as on operational and budgeting initiatives. He also provided consulting services to regional and community banks on technology, operations and information security best practices. Cassada’s mantra regarding leadership is: “We can do anything, but we can’t do everything.” “My team knows I’m going to be focused on the things we can actually achieve that will bring value to our clients,” Cassada said. “At LoanLogics, we have created a suite of powerful products that have many applications in the mortgage industry, but they are all designed to fulfill one purpose — manufacturing quality loans. As wonderful as some of our ideas may be, if our solutions do not fulfill that purpose, we are not going to move forward with those ideas.”

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“My secret to success is listening to the field. No matter what, I go back to listen and learn what is happening with my sales team and the industry. I am never too proud to listen and adapt.”

“That’s a very easy answer – trusted relationships. Trust is very important to me.”

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 47

2017 VANGUARDS

FRANKLIN CODEL

CASEY CRAWFORD

SENIOR EVP, CONSUMER LENDING | WELLS FARGO

FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER | MOVEMENT MORTGAGE

Lending

NDER the leadership of Franklin Codel, Wells Fargo Home Lending is on pace to finish 2017 as the nation’s leading originator and servicer of mortgages for the 10th consecutive year. Codel took over the company’s home lending operations in 2015, and in 2016 he was named head of consumer lending. Codel is also currently a member of the Wells Fargo Operating Committee. Today, Codel oversees a team of 45,000 consumer lending professionals that serves 14 million households by helping customers with their borrowing needs, from major purchases to achieving and sustaining homeownership. On the home-lending side, the company funded $244 billion in mortgage and home equity loans in 2016, representing a 12% market share, and currently services $1.5 trillion in residential mortgage loans. In 2017, the company made great strides in advancing its digital mortgage offerings and is well positioned to earn its customers future business through exciting capabilities that will deliver a simple and intuitive mortgage application experience. In servicing, Wells Fargo invested in streamlining and optimizing decision engines and upgrading platforms to increase loan servicing capacity and allowed for the company’s acquisition of a 230,000 loan portfolio from Seneca Mortgage. “Every day we help people achieve their dreams of succeeding financially through homeownership,” said Codel. “We firmly believe that sustainable homeownership is America’s solution to wealth building and economic equality.”

VER the last year, founder and CEO Casey Crawford has continued to drive Movement Mortgage to industry-leading growth. The company is on track to originate more than $13 billion in residential mortgages in 2017, up 10% from 2016. Movement has achieved loan volume growth of 632% over the past five years, and the company currently stands 8th overall in FHA purchase loans and 7th overall in VA purchase loans. Movement has also had strong recruiting successes. Since the beginning of 2017, Crawford has successfully recruited Fortune 500 executives to join the company. Crawford also worked in close partnership with Silicon Valley leader Nima Ghamsari to launch Easy App last fall. The digital mortgage experience that brings the beginning of the mortgage process to a tablet or mobile device also uses bank-grade security to sync user data in one place. Launched with the goal to empower more borrowers to control their home-buying experience, the Easy App has been used to submit more than 100,000 files and led to an overall decrease in loan processing times at Movement Mortgage. In June 2017, Crawford became the majority shareholder and chairman of the board of the former First State Bank in Danville, Virginia, following a $10 million personal investment. The bank changed its name to Movement Bank and adopted a new strategy to expand its mortgage lending operations, add additional markets, develop improved products and services for consumers and businesses and change how Americans are served by banks.

WHAT IS ONE THING YOU CANNOT DO WITHOUT?

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

“Feedback and input from our customers and our team. Every decision we make as a leadership team is viewed through the lens of its impact on our customers, team and the communities we serve; the insight we gain from their feedback is invaluable.”

“My dad owned a hardware store while I was growing up. He lived and worked every day with what became the inspiration for our mission. His desire to love and value customers, community and employees is what drives Movement and myself today.”

48 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

ALEX ELEZAJ

JASON FRAZIER

CEO | CLASS APPRAISAL

CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER | MASON-MCDUFFIE MORTGAGE

Real Estate

EW to the industry in 2015, Alex Elezaj has made a tremendous impact at Class Appraisal and the industry in a short period of time. Under his tenure as CEO, Class Appraisal has more than tripled its annual revenue and built strategic business partnerships with more than a thousand of the nation’s top performing appraisers. Now the company is doing business with more than 300 lenders, including several of the Top 25 financial institutions in the country. Since Elezaj took the reins, Class Appraisal has introduced several new technologies, such as Lead Time Calculator, a webbased interface that allows users to check on the lead time for an appraisal in a certain area. The information is based on collected historical data and provides a snapshot of what is happening in a particular area. Over the past three years, Class Appraisal has experienced annual growth rate increases of more than 70%, and is expecting to continue their momentum over the course of the next several years. In the last year, Class Appraisal revenue is up more than 40%, and the company is set on being the No. 1 appraisal management company in the country. Elezaj’s leadership is all about his focus on people, culture, and building the ultimate client experience. “Treating people well, always doing the right thing, and being in the weeds of your business are an absolute requirement to leading a company,” Elezaj said. “Many leaders lose sight as to how important it is to know all of the little things that are going on in their respective business.”

Lending

S the chief information officer and chief strategy officer for Mason-McDuffie Mortgage, Jason Frazier created and continues to lead the company’s digital evolution. Frazier oversees the Prime Services Group, which covers all aspects of technology, business development, marketing, communications, social media, training and human resources. He designed his group to be the premiere concierge group to support all of Mason-McDuffie’s business channels. The growth Mason-McDuffie Mortgage has experienced in the last year is mostly due to focusing on mortgage lending for the new era of consumerism and dedication to being different. “The biggest problem in this industry is complacency and the idea that things do not have to change,” Frazier’s nominator wrote. “Complacency hurts the ability to innovate, which is what we brought Jason here to do. Most don’t have vision to see how different things can be, only what they are. He doesn’t want to improve broken processes; He wants to reimagine the entire mortgage experience.” Frazier has more than 18 years of expertise in technology startups and venture capital, having previously held senior-level technology positions in Silicon Valley. He joined Mason-McDuffie Mortgage in 2009, was promoted to CIO in 2015 and was named as the company’s chief strategy officer in 2017. The firm’s founder and chairman, Herb Tasker, believes social media and new technology platforms are the key to the future for the company and the industry. “Persuading loan officers to change the way they do business is the challenge that Frazier is meeting head-on,” Tasker said.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

“Treat people well, always do the right thing, and be in the weeds of your business.”

“To see the whole board. Not only what has happened, what is happening, but also what will happen. Only with a well-rounded vision can you be prepared to tackle the future.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 49

2017 VANGUARDS

DAN HANSON

MARK HIKEL

CHIEF RETAIL PRODUCTION OFFICER | LOANDEPOT

CEO | CHRONOS SOLUTIONS

Lending

URING the past year at loanDepot, Dan Hanson was promoted from executive vice president of national production to chief retail production officer. With this promotion, Hanson now leads the development of the company’s retail production team. Hanson is driving the team to achieve its uncompromising mission to become a top lender of choice in America. Hanson is responsible for leading the sales organization and overseeing the company’s plans to increase its retail footprint while expanding the scope of origination opportunities nationwide. In 2017, Hanson’s distributed retail team will fund more than 40,000 mortgage loans, exceeding a total of $12 billion. His team consists of more than a thousand loan consultants and is on target to achieve more than 85% in purchase loans. Hanson is also responsible for more than 200 lending stores across the country. In addition to his leadership in the lending industry, Hanson serves as an active board member of several national nonprofit organizations, including the Forum of Christian Business Leaders, HomeAid America, Free Wheelchair Mission and the University of Redlands’ Global Business. Hanson is also a member of the board of trustees for the California Homebuilding Foundation. Hanson’s outlook on leadership urges others to look at who they’re allied with. “If you’re a leader of people — and I believe we’re all leaders in one way or another — I encourage you to choose your allies, recognize their strengths (as well as your own) and embark on the journey together, facing down all obstacles and challenges,” he said.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “My father was a POW for three years in Manila during WWII. When I got older, I asked him how he survived such a brutal ordeal. He simply said: ‘When you are going through a really difficult circumstance, keep going! Everyone goes through difficult times, keep moving and hold on to your hope.’” 50 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Lending

N the past year, Mark Hikel has seen the company he transformed and led for eight years become an integral part of Chronos Solutions. Spokane, Washington-based UPF Services was acquired by Chronos Solutions in July 2016 and has been key to raising Chronos Solutions’ profile as it expanded products and services to become the nation’s only provider offering every service on the closing disclosure. The acquisition of Commerce Title and Cogent Road in the first quarter of 2016 gave Chronos a complete suite of solutions for mortgage origination. In January 2017, Hikel’s proven ability growing a company – both through product development and by hiring and inspiring executives and employees – made him the obvious choice to become Chronos Solutions’ CEO. Because of Hikel’s successful integration of the acquisitions and implementation of new strategies, Chronos Solutions has moved beyond its place as a default-centric provider to a business with counter-cyclicality and a more balanced revenue model. His design and implementation of UPF Services’ vertically integrated real estate services platform with sophisticated point-of-sale interface and streamlined fulfillment process is now empowering Chronos Solutions’ national identity. Based on his achievements with UPF Services, Chronos Solutions is now in a position to take a much larger leadership role in the real estate and mortgage industries. After joining UPF as its CEO in 2008, Hikel refocused the company, redefining its product/service strategy and delivery execution. He increased product and services from four offerings to more than 80 within the first 14 months of taking over the company and implemented new products and services, a cross-selling sales strategy, and the launch of proprietary delivery technology, which effectively offset revenue attrition by 40%.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “Inspect what you expect.”

2017 VANGUARDS

BRIAN HUGHES

MATT HUMPHREY

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | TITLE SOURCE

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO | LENDINGHOME

Lending

RIAN Hughes’ work in support of the nationwide eClosing initiative is helping to shape the future of the mortgage industry. He has established an expert team that, through his leadership, is impacting change at the national, legislative level by becoming advocates and educators. Hughes’ ability to find the balance between the multiple perspectives that fuel successful solutions is anchored in his commitment to recognizing and understanding the client experience. Hughes and his team regularly contribute as speakers and panelists at high-profile, national conferences. More importantly, they are actively participating on various working groups with industry associations including the Mortgage Bankers Association, the American Land Title Association and more. He is committed to educating the industry about the future of eClosing and takes ownership to complete necessary actions to support its implementation. Hughes believes strongly in the power of a team environment and has worked diligently to create that team success culture during his 17 years at Title Source. For example, he hosts “Office Hours” that allow any team member in the company to have oneon-one time with him and also participates in a program called “Chow with a Chief” to solicit open honest feedback from team members over lunch. Positively reinforcing what people are doing right, encouraging and listening to everyone’s ideas, cultivating empathy and inspiring an insatiable curiosity are all elements of Title Source’s company culture that align with his drive to impact the progress of the nationwide eClosing initiative.

Lending

NDER Matt Humphrey’s leadership, the past 12 months have been a time of substantial growth for LendingHome. The company announced a new infusion of $56.6 million in equity, which brings its total equity raised to $166 million. That announcement came on the heels of another major milestone: LendingHome’s loan volume surpassed $100 million per month earlier in the third quarter. Fueled by phenomenal growth, the company is on an annual run rate of over $1 billion. Humphrey’s leadership has helped LendingHome attract a world-class executive team with deep experience in mortgage underwriting, risk modeling, credit analytics, operations and technology. Prior to founding LendingHome, Humphrey founded and sold e-commerce platform HomeRun when he was 23 years old and successfully exited for north of $100 million less than 18 months after it launched. LendingHome is his seventh startup. Since 2005, he has built companies in the spaces of advertising, consumer Internet, social games, P2P content delivery, retail analytics, and more. Humphrey began college studies at Carnegie Mellon at the age of 13 and went on to receive a degree in computer science, as well as an MBA. Along with steering the helm at LendingHome, Humphrey is an active angel investor who has invested in more than 100 startups since 2012 including many notable Silicon Valley successes. In this role, Humphrey regularly mentors startup founders, and he is often heard telling these aspiring tech CEOs to “work hard, go big, and play to win.”

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “‘If you want to learn something, teach it.’ It’s true. I carried that lesson with me through eight years of coaching hockey, and I apply it today.”

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “The world doesn’t owe you anything.” — Jim Humphrey, dad HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 51

2017 VANGUARDS

BREW JOHNSON

KYLE KAMROOZ

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO | PEERSTREET

CO-FOUNDER | CLOUDVIRGA

Lending

HIS past year has been one of tremendous growth for PeerStreet, a platform for investing in real estate-backed loans. As co-founder and CEO, Brew Johnson has played a critical role in driving the direction of PeerStreet, which has seen monthly origination volumes of around $50 million and growth of roughly 900% in YoY revenue, as well as increasing the number of employees from 25 to 75. The achievements of this past year are a testament to his confidence and belief in the core mission of PeerStreet: to democratize access to real estate debt as an asset class for investors, and through the process, make everyone involved better off. That includes not just investors, who gain access to high-quality, highyield investments, but also lenders, who are able to access the global capital markets through PeerStreet. Those benefits continue through to borrowers, who now have more access to loans and even non-participants who enjoy neighborhoods improving all around them. This “benefit-the-ecosystem” philosophy and the strength of PeerStreet’s business model helped the company raise their $15 million Series A funding led by Andreessen Horowitz. Much like Johnson’s favorite quote – “be quick, but don’t hurry” – from legendary coach John Wooden, PeerStreet has scaled quickly, onboarding new investors and lenders and funding more loans, all while still maintaining rigorous quality standards for vetting investments and staying true to their mission to democratize the real estate investment industry.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “Fabio once told me to take multi minerals and NOT vitamins for fantastic hair and skin. True story.”

52 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Lending

N experienced real estate finance and technology executive, Cloudvirga Co-founder Kyle Kamrooz has experience spanning all areas of residential mortgage lending, from wholesale to retail and from direct-to-consumer to correspondent lending. He also has more than six years’ experience in fintech, product development and SaaS development. By age 25, Kamrooz built one of the largest direct-to-consumer mortgage lending companies in Orange County, California. He went on to expand his next business venture, Sage Credit, into a nationwide mortgage company that processed more than $7 billion in loans yearly and employed more than 500 employees in branch offices nationwide. Kamrooz witnessed first-hand the massive inefficiencies of the home-loan process for both consumers and lenders. He recognized that the mortgage industry was lagging behind other industries in harnessing workflow automation and raw data. Since founding Cloudvirga in 2015, Kamrooz has continued to guide the firm’s success as its chief operating officer. In the last 12 months, he has forged technology partnerships with some of the industry’s most innovative service providers, including FormFree, Docutech, Mercury Network, Equifax and ClosingCorp. He also raised $15 million in a series B funding round led by a BlackStone Group portfolio company in April 2017. Kamrooz serves on Fannie Mae’s Technology Advisory Board and is an active member of the Mortgage Bankers Association, serving on several regulatory committees.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “My mentor always coached me on the importance of having grit. For me, grit means having the passion and perseverance to achieve my long-term goals. I’m also someone who is willing to think outside the box and who is not afraid to get in the weeds.”

2017 VANGUARDS

TAWN KELLEY

COLLEEN LAMBROS

PRESIDENT | TAYLOR MORRISON HOME FUNDING

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER | AUCTION.COM

Lending

NDER President Tawn Kelley’s leadership, Taylor Morrison Home Funding has grown into a 100% subsidiary of Taylor Morrison to services their customers. Through Mortgage Funding Direct Ventures, she has maintained Mattamy Home Funding, Neal Communities Funding and Inspired Title Services. Kelley’s family of companies has grown from a staff of three in 2001 to more than 300 employees nationwide today. Through TMHF University, more than 20 new or recent college graduates were hired and have successfully completed training as mortgage loan originators and loan processors. Combined, the companies she leads offer financing in 26 markets nationally and closed more than 6,200 homes for just shy of $2 billion in purchase money mortgages in 2016. They are on pace to eclipse that outstanding performance this year. Since 2012, TMHF has seen an 189% increase in loan volume and maintains an average 78% success capture rate. Kelley believes that using finance as a sales tool helps sell homes, creating a more seamless home-buying experience. After the financial meltdown, she created Able Ready Own, a free qualification improvement department for TMHF customers that helps them achieve the best financing and lowest rates, and helps them understand their credit profile. Since inception in 2010, ARO has assisted over 1,250 families to graduate the program and improve their financing qualification and interest rates with an average score increase of 44 points in less than 75 days, generating over $339 million dollars in closed purchase volume.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “It’s always been an unwavering passion to making a difference and being the best for those that we serve. Our company, our customers and our amazing employees. Never underestimate what you’re capable of!”

Real Estate

EVERAGING more than 20 years of proven marketing experience in the real estate industry, Colleen Lambros leads Auction.com’s marketing organization, creating innovative campaigns to drive visibility and increase engagement. In the past 12 months, Lambros spearheaded Auction. com’s comprehensive brand evolution, oversaw the continued growth of the platform and initiated a new strategy aimed to hyper-localize the company’s brand and products within each of the 3,100 counties it serves. As Auction.com evolved, the original brand no longer reflected the company’s deep culture of innovation, the relentless commitment to the customers and communities it serves it and most importantly the depth of experience, talent and service that has made it the largest and most trusted estate platform. Lambros identified this gap and launched a year-long campaign to develop and implement a new brand, while also ensuring the revised brand would pay respect to the past 10 years of partnership and innovation to the industry. As a result of her leadership, Auction.com unveiled its new brand look with the tagline “Beyond the bid” in August of 2017, demonstrating the commitment Auction.com has established to provide for its buyers, sellers and communities. Marketing is most often viewed within the framework of a strategy to sell more products or services; however, Lambros understood the value of extending marketing capabilities to the buyers and sellers of real estate themselves, bringing buyers the best properties that match their interests and portfolios, while enabling sellers to develop optimal disposition strategies based on data intelligence focused on the buyer market.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “Focus your work and energy in areas that are your personal strength and give you great joy.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 53

2017 VANGUARDS

BEN MADICK

GARY MALIS

CO-FOUNDER AND COO | MATIC INSURANCE SERVICES

CHIEF STRATEGY & CAPITAL MARKETS OFFICER | PARAMOUNT RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE GROUP

Lending

EN Madick is co-founder and COO of Matic Insurance Services, a technology-driven insurance agency focused on helping lenders and loan officers better integrate homeowner’s insurance into the lending process. By integrating with both lenders and insurance carriers, Matic uses loan application information and first-of-its-kind technology to provide homebuyers multiple policy options within seconds, helping loan officers close their loans faster. Matic was founded in 2014, and like most technology firms, spent its first 18 months focused on product development and refinement. Since 2016, the company has steadily grown to become the market leader in lender and servicer distribution of HOI. Over the last year, Madick and his team of 28 employees have forged partnerships with more than 10 of the nation’s top-rated insurance carriers, including such household names as Nationwide and Progressive. By leveraging API integrations, Matic can collect highly accurate HOI quotes in just seconds. In the last 12 months, Matic has announced integrations with such leading mortgage loan origination software and point-ofsale systems as Ellie Mae Encompass, BeSmartee, Maxwell, MortgageHippo and Roostify. Matic also integrates with major real estate agent portals such as Homie and Open Listings. When not serving Matic and its clients as the company’s COO, Madick frequently speaks at industry events and contributes to industry publications. His areas of expertise include compliance, risk management and insurance carrier partnerships.

Lending

N the last 12 months, Gary Malis successfully unwound a 10-year-old consulting company while transitioning into the executive management and ownership role of chief strategy and capital markets officer with Paramount Residential Mortgage Group. Malis oversees corporate strategy and capital markets for PRMG, including all areas of secondary marketing, risk, strategic operations, warehouse lending, compliance, credit policy, ancillary services, valuations and acquisitions. Unwinding a current client base is no easy task and the propensity to burn bridges or rush out the door to greener pastures are a mistake made far too often. “I consider it a great honor that all my current clients trusted me through the final day and we remain friends,” Malis said. “Clients were handled openly and honestly and with integrity by navigating a proper wind down and careful transition that left them secure and sound with the understanding I am only a phone call away.” Two of Malis’ most trusted associates from the firm joined him at PRMG. Malis took great care to place them where their value and talent could be utilized and appreciated rapidly. “It is far too common for executives to bring their top people over without making the proper effort to assimilate effectively into the new company and they fail to merge the talent they bring with the history and culture of the company they are joining,” Malis said. “We have experienced a seamless transition that has blended respectful change, enthusiasm and immediate bonding.”

WHAT IS ONE THING YOU CANNOT DO WITHOUT?

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“Anyone who knows me knows that I use lists to stay organized in both my personal and professional life. I’ve got the whole team using Asana so we’re all on the same page and can easily track tasks.”

“My desire to know every aspect of business, even if not yet an expert, has given me even more access to the best and brightest people.”

54 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

MARY ANN MCGARRY

CLAUDIA MERKLE

PRESIDENT AND CEO | GUILD MORTGAGE

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | NATIONAL MI

Lending

NDER the leadership of President and CEO Mary Ann McGarry, Guild Mortgage has grown to become one of the largest independent mortgage lenders in the country, dedicated to helping first-time homebuyers achieve home ownership. In the past year, the company introduced innovative low down-payment programs to help more people qualify for loans. Guild also specializes in helping active duty and retired military personnel secure VA loans, which provide 100% financing and flexible qualifying standards. Guild’s financial growth rate has been among the highest in the industry, and the company is now a Top 10 national lender by purchase volume. Under McGarry’s direction, Guild achieved record loan volume of $15.9 billion in 2016, which was up 15.3% from $13.8 billion in 2015. Guild’s growth has continued in 2017, as Guild reported a record overall loan volume of $7.3 billion for the first half of the year, up 7.1% from $6.8 billion in the same period of 2016. The increase was propelled by a purchase loan volume jump almost 50% from the first quarter to the second quarter of 2017. McGarry, who began her career at Guild in 1984, has established a core philosophy in which Guild’s senior leadership listens to and values feedback from the company’s more than 4,000 employees nationwide. According to McGarry, this inspires great leaders throughout the organization and allows Guild to excel at finding the right solution for each individual borrower, ultimately allowing more people to get into homes and stay in their homes.

VER the past 25 years, National MI COO Claudia Merkle has emerged as an innovative and influential leader in the mortgage industry. With experience in mortgage insurance, mortgage banking, business development and operations, she is known for fostering a positive, diverse work environment where she listens to and values all perspectives. In September 2016, Merkle was promoted to COO of National MI. Merkle has been with National MI since the company’s inception in 2012 when she joined as senior vice president of underwriting and risk operations. In 2013, she was promoted to executive vice president, insurance operations, and in 2015 she assumed the additional responsibilities of managing National MI’s sales and marketing functions. Merkle has played a key role in more than doubling National MI’s lender clients in the past four years to over 1,200 clients today, and the company continues to grow. Since 2015, National MI has tripled its market share. The company achieved GAAP profitability in the second quarter of 2016, just three years after writing its first mortgage insurance policy. Merkle is well-recognized as a thought leader for positive change and improvements in the mortgage insurance industry. She is perhaps best known for National MI’s groundbreaking insurance coverage that shortened the traditional industry timeframe for rescission relief from 36 to 12 months. The product, National MI Safeguard, started an important trend in the mortgage insurance business as other companies followed suit to shorten the time period for rescission relief.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

WHAT ONE HABIT HAS MADE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE IN YOUR SUCCESS?

“In order to lead, you need to be fearless and attract talented people, listen to them and trust their judgment. A talented team will find a solution where no one individual can.”

“If I could boil it down to one habit, it’s preparation. I’m a big believer in the importance of laying the groundwork, and I think it has made all the difference in my success.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 55

2017 VANGUARDS

RYAN O’HARA

CHAD MOSLEY

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | MCS SOLUTIONS

CEO | MOVE

Real Estate

S the chief operating officer of MCS Solutions, Chad Mosley leads the company’s business development, marketing and new client onboarding, in addition to overseeing the valuations, title and security divisions. Under Mosley’s leadership, the company’s Ruston, Louisiana, operations center’s headcount has grown 21% in the past year. MCS has added eight new processes to its Ruston site, helping to drive company performance in the areas of quality and timeliness. Mosley partners daily with the onsite management team to ensure there is continuity between sites and they have the tools needed for success every day. MCS continues to grow with new and existing clients fueled by support of MCS’ business development, marketing and client onboarding teams. Under Mosley’s leadership, the company has built a sales team comprised of experienced and expert operators from the business. MCS also utilizes its proprietary onboarding process to ensure that all new field services, valuations and title clients are successfully onboarded at the beginning of each relationship to ensure performance goals are met. In the last year, MCS acquired two companies, adding to MCS’ existing valuations platform as well as an initial entry to the title and closing space. These businesses were successfully integrated into the MCS family under Mosley’s leadership. Mosley believes in striving to lead downline, upline and with peers across an entire organization. This is evident as he utilizes his responsibility as a leader to help develop new leaders and be a positive influence for the next generation of leadership for MCS.

WHAT’S HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “Any success I have achieved has been positively impacted by our team members, vendor partners and the management team we have built. I believe in hiring exceptionally talented individuals, giving them the tools and support needed to be successful.” 56 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

N January 2015, Ryan O’Hara was named CEO of Move, the company that oversees operations for realtor.com, and since then he has been instrumental in the unprecedented growth for the home-listing site. Since O’Hara joined Move, realtor. com has seen consumer engagement double to 58 million average monthly unique users through Q2 2017. Users viewed an average of over 2 billion pages and spent an average of more than 1 billion minutes on the realtor.com website and mobile applications each month. Realtor.com generates the majority of its revenue through the sale of listing advertisement products, which allow real estate agents, brokers and franchises to enhance, prioritize and connect with consumers on for-sale property listings. Under O’Hara’s leadership, revenue at Move increased $37 million, or 10%, to $394 million in fiscal year 2017, from $357 million in fiscal year 2016. On leadership, O’Hara says persistence is key, quoting former President Calvin Coolidge: “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” Recent Realtor.com innovations include strengthening local information with school search, transit maps and nearby amenities, the debut of an iMessage feature which allows mobile users to share listings with friends and family, patent pending utilization of augmented reality in Sign Snap and Street Peek, and My Home, which empowers homeowners to manage their home as an investment.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “Keep learning - inside the job, outside the job, all along the business journey.”

2017 VANGUARDS

STAVROS PAPASTAVROU

JAY PLUM

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD | THE MONEY SOURCE

EVP, CONSUMER AND MORTGAGE LENDING DIRECTOR | HUNTINGTON BANK

Lending

Y making nimble, yet measured, moves by anticipating the needs of today’s borrowers, industry partners, and clients, Chairman of the Board Stavros Papastavrou has positioned The Money Source to be a pioneer in the fintech space and has led the company to a spot as a Top 25 lender. Papastavrou emigrated to the U.S. from Cyprus and began a career in construction. In 1997, he founded The Money Source as a single mortgage broker in New York. Now, the company is one of the fastest growing, privately-owned lender servicers licensed nationwide. In the last year, The Money Source has become a Top 15 correspondent investor, a Tier 1 GNMA-approved subservicer, a licensed servicer for all 50 states and brought loan servicing in-house. Under Papastavrou’s leadership, the company took a leap and launched a web-based loan servicing platform, SIME, “Servicing Intelligence Made Easy,” which provides real-time reporting and transparency. SIME recognizes that the servicing portfolio —including its borrowers—is a company’s most valuable asset that should be nurtured in real time. Papastavrou proudly displays his favorite quote behind his desk: “No Excuses.” To him, “No Excuses” is a call to action and reflects a corporate culture that celebrates openness, solutions, results and accountability. From his roots in building and construction, Papastavrou is hands-on and holds himself to the same expectations that he holds his dedicated team of 600 employees.

Lending

S Huntington’s executive vice president of consumer and mortgage lending, Jay Plum has transformed the bank’s home lending business during his eight-year tenure. Over the last 12 months, his vision and leadership have driven Huntington to outperform other lenders and help more families than ever with their lending needs. In 2016, Plum’s consumer and mortgage lending business achieved more than $9 billion in originations — a record year for the bank. Huntington recently became the top purchase lender in Ohio and second in Michigan. The bank now ranks highest for closed loans per mortgage loan officer compared to other lenders in the company’s expansive peer group. In consumer lending, Huntington now ranks No. 1 for home equity in several categories, including home equity line of credit production ranking/market share out of 20 in-footprint lenders, per ICON Analytics. Part of the sales growth is a result of Plum’s decision to invest in a new loan origination system, which recently launched across Huntington’s eight-state footprint after years in development. The system simplifies the lending process, increases loan production and allows the bank to better communicate with borrowers. Huntington recently earned an “outstanding” rating from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for its Community Reinvestment Act Performance Evaluation. This rating is a large result of initiatives Plum launched within the mortgage lending business to meet the needs of low- to moderate-income families, including a promotion waiving lender closing costs for borrowers purchasing homes in low- to moderate-income census tracts.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “To maintain discipline and an unwavering focus on long-term goals! This industry is highly susceptible to change, and it’s all too easy to fall into the trap where we continually react. My focus on long-term goals guides my day-to-day decision making.”

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED? “My grandmother often remarked: “Work hard, treat others the way you want to be treated, and if you need to get something done, you have your own two hands.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 57

2017 VANGUARDS

BRAD RABLE

MOHAMMAD RASHID

CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER | STEWART TITLE

VP, HEAD OF CONSUMER LENDING PRACTICE | TAVANT TECHNOLOGIES

Lending

N his role as chief information officer at Stewart, Brad Rable has global responsibility for Stewart’s enterprise technology-driven vision, strategies and initiatives, enabling business scalability and efficiency. He also oversees the technology infrastructure and support for the entire organization – ensuring optimal performance and improving associate productivity and satisfaction. Rable is constantly working to transform the historically technology-stagnant title industry into a forward-thinking leader in real estate services. His primary initiative is to drive the digital customer experience with paperless eClosing technology. Through his leadership, he has been able to develop a core internal team – from sales, legal, compliance, marketing and IT – to make this strategy a reality. Rable takes a multipronged approach to building the support for eClosings. He authors a monthly blog series entitled “The Closing Room” that breaks down the many facets of eClosing and walks real estate professionals through the process of moving to a digital closing experience. He has also developed an interactive heat map that outlines the multiple regulations surrounding eClosings – down to the county level. Rable has also successfully introduced the necessary infrastructure to enable 16 offices in five states to complete eClosings – and more offices are being brought online each week. Known as a big-picture thinker and dynamic leader, Rable drives impactful change by “taking bold action” and constantly disrupting the status quo.

ITH more than 25 years of experience in developing advanced enterprise mortgage systems, Mohammad Rashid has helped Fortune 500 financial institutions and mortgage lenders transform their lending business process and technology landscape. This includes leading the design and development of cutting-edge loan origination systems, pricing engines and digital experience platforms. Rashid is responsible for driving strategy, offerings and revenue of Tavant’s path-breaking and market-leading consumer lending business, currently leading that business to a revenue target of $250 million. Rashid designed and engineered Tavant FinConnect, the industry’s leading mortgage enterprise data hub. FinConnect now has more than 40 connections to industry’s leading third-party service providers and is widely used by the Top 50 lenders. FinConnect processes more than a million transactions each year. Rashid is instrumental in expanding Tavant’s footprint into the mortgage insurance industry, credit bureaus and data providers. He is also leading Tavant’s foray into international mortgage industries, such as those in Canada and Australia. Under Rashid’s leadership, Tavant launched its AI-powered version of Tavant VELOX, the industry’s leading digital lending platform. Rashid used his expertise in AI techniques, process optimization and automation to enhance the digital platform with AI capabilities. VELOX is now the industry’s only AI-powered digital lending platform launched at the Digital Mortgage conference.

WHAT ONE HABIT HAS MADE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE IN YOUR SUCCESS?

“Utilizing the perspective and unique viewpoints of my team to build a better solution. This mindset helps me empower my teams to achieve success.”

“I identify trends early. This habit helps to assemble and motivate a team to innovate and deliver great products.”

58 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

ANDREW RIPPERT

BARRY SANDO

CEO, GLOBAL MORTGAGE GROUP | ARCH CAPITAL GROUP

MANAGING DIRECTOR OF RISK MANAGEMENT AND WORKFLOW | CORELOGIC

Lending

S chief executive officer, Andrew Rippert is responsible for leading and managing Arch Capital Group’s global mortgage insurance, reinsurance and credit risk operations. In his role, Rippert leads the company’s key markets in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. In the past year, Rippert led Arch’s efforts to acquire United Guaranty — then the mortgage insurance market share leader — from AIG. The acquisition combined the two most innovative mortgage insurers to create a new industry leader. As part of the acquisition of United Guaranty, Arch acquired AIG United Guaranty Insurance Asia, expanding Arch’s mortgage guaranty operations to Hong Kong. Since the deal closed, Rippert has overseen the successful integration of the two companies, including relocating its headquarters from California to North Carolina and consolidating systems and processes, all while minimizing customer disruption. In addition to oversight of domestic and international flow of the company’s mortgage insurance operations, Rippert continues to showcase his dedication to drive innovation in the larger mortgage industry. In leading Arch Capital’s credit risk transfer initiative, Rippert worked within the GSE and non-GSE space to find new opportunities for originators, insurance companies, and investors in the single-family, up-front credit risk transfer market. As a result of his leadership, the company led the development of reinsurance execution for GSE credit risk transfers under Freddie Mac’s ACIS transactions.

WHAT IS ONE THING YOU CANNOT DO WITHOUT? “Having a professional, knowledgeable, committed team is critical to any leader’s success. Habits, advice, and secrets to success are all important, but if you don’t have a world-class team working together, it’s impossible to effect positive change.”

Real Estate

N accomplished senior executive with diversified sales and operations experience creating and leading a portfolio of mortgage servicing and origination businesses representing $800 million in annual revenue, Barry Sando possesses a strong track record of timely, profit-maximizing decisions in rapidly changing competitive environments. As managing director of risk management and workflow at CoreLogic, Sando oversaw the opening of the company’s new Dallas campus in 2017. Designed to embody the spirit of “One CoreLogic,” the open-plan facility furthers a culture of connectivity, collaboration and community that is essential to foster innovation and drive growth. In 2017, Sando also led the launch of one of the solutions that came out of the CoreLogic Innovation Labs—Property Tax Estimator, an automated solution designed to help improve the accuracy of property tax data. He also led the CoreLogic Tax Transformation Project, which migrated and unified the company’s extensive Tax Payment Services data assets and applications onto a more advanced platform. The investment is helping to ensure stronger alignment with roadmap modernization initiatives for next-generation product enhancements. During his career spanning 30 years, Sando has led major initiatives encompassing strategic planning, sales management, mortgage servicing operations, business transformation, leadership development and organizational effectiveness. He is especially recognized for creating high performance cultures that attract and retain diverse talent.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “I’ve surrounded myself with innovative, driven, highly capable and passionate team members. Having a strong team around me has also allowed me to step outside my comfort zone.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 59

2017 VANGUARDS

TERRY SCHMIDT

DAVE SIMS

EVP AND COO | GUILD MORTGAGE

CEO | FLOIFY

Lending

ITH more than 30 years of experience in helping grow Guild into a Top 10 independent mortgage lender, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Terry Schmidt has led efforts to improve the mortgage industry in many ways. Since her career began at Guild in 1985, Schmidt has worked to develop, empower and inspire leaders at the company, throughout the mortgage lending industry and in her community. Schmidt has been the driving force in leading Guild Mortgage’s senior management team in the development and execution of a strategic business and financial plan that has helped the company grow to become one of the nation’s largest independent mortgage lenders. Schmidt is responsible for financial and investor reporting, budgeting, cash management, warehouse lending and human resource functions at Guild. Schmidt has helped increase Guild’s national market share every year since beginning the company’s long-term growth plan in 2008; the company now has more than four times the national market share it had in 2009. She has also developed sophisticated reporting systems for measuring branch performance as part of Guild’s entrepreneurial approach. Her versatility extends from the financial aspects of the business to product development, advertising and systems design. Perhaps most impressively, Schmidt led the efforts to establish Guild’s first nonprofit organization, the Guild Giving Foundation, in 2017. The program was launched to encourage volunteerism among Guild’s more than 4,000 employees and deliver on its mission to inspire positive change in every community it serves.

N the last year, Dave Sims, Floify’s founder and CEO, has continued to be a leader and visionary within the mortgage lending industry. Through tireless dedication, and a headdown and work-hard approach, Sims successfully continues to bridge the gap between technology and the needs of loan officers, mortgage lenders and the borrowers they serve. As a veteran software engineer, licensed loan officer and former mortgage borrower, Sims has taken his and countless other consumers’ personal frustrations with the loan process and grown Floify into the leading mortgage automation solution of top-producing mortgage professionals. Since Floify’s launch in 2013, Sims has developed Floify from a simple customer-funded concept into a robust mortgage automation platform that now supports more than 200,000 users via Floify’s mobile and cloudbased SaaS solutions. Building upon these accomplishments, Sims continues to be a thought-leader in the mortgage lending space by establishing and growing strategic partnerships that further enhance the lender-borrower experience. Sims continues to innovate by expanding his solution’s unique App Store framework, which allows third-party developers and technology vendors to seamlessly integrate with the Floify platform. Today, Floify users report being able to close loans an average of eight times faster, increase their annual loan volume by more than 11% without adding additional staff, and reduce their workload by up to five hours per loan while maintaining existing volume – all while dramatically improving lender-borrower communication and satisfaction.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS? “A constant quest for learning and seeking better ways to lead the organization.” 60 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

“The secret to success in my businesses has been in our hiring strategy. Making sure a new employee is the right fit within our company’s unique culture is important to us.”

2017 VANGUARDS

STEVE SMITH

SCOTT STODDARD

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER | STEARNS LENDING

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO | QUANDIS

Lending

S a seasoned industry professional with nearly three decades of mortgage banking and financial services industry experience, Steve Smith, chief financial officer for Stearns Lending, has used his superior leadership skills and a strong background in financial systems, operational activities and compliance management systems to lead Stearns Lending into the digital age. This past year, Smith worked closely with the company’s technology leaders and their teams and completed the successful transition of the company’s accounting, accounts payable and procurement functions to a seamless digital platform. The efficiencies and cost controls achieved had a nearly immediate impact. In addition, the platform allows for a full vendor management and maintenance cycle that is of immense strategic value for the entire enterprise – especially given the increased focus on compliance and managing vendor risk. Many lenders face a digital divide – a state in which the customer-facing systems have gone digital, but the workforce has not. The new streamlined experience for the Stearns workforce makes the company one of the few that has removed this impediment and linked its team members to digital tools for support, connectivity and collaboration. Smith led this successful effort while also ensuring that his teams responsible for treasury and finance activities and strategies achieved superior performance levels in their respective disciplines. “The benefits of our digital platform go beyond the quantifiable efficiency improvements and cost control numbers. The new streamlined experience for the Stearns workforce reaps both tangible and intangible rewards,” Smith said.

Servicing

S chief executive officer and co-founder of Quandis, Scott Stoddard’s expertise in providing innovative default servicing technology solutions to the mortgage banking industry spans more than 25 years. Since founding Quandis in 2003, his leadership and management style has fostered entrepreneurial minded, out-of-the-box thinking and has resulted in a very low attrition rate with staff. Quandis made headway in 2017 with its existing Military Search Service for Servicemembers Civil Relief Act compliance. A roll-your-sleeves-up type of executive, Stoddard worked directly with the Quandis development team to enhance and make the Military Search Service more robust, which included establishing more granular searches for active duty personnel. The enhancements Stoddard drove proved to deliver many internal procedure efficiencies for law firms, significantly reduced costs for SCRA compliance adherence, and identify borrowers that have active duty status. In 2017, Quandis also officially rolled out Quandis Court Connect, a sophisticated data service that completely automates much needed monitoring of state courts for desired case activity to satisfy compliance and adhere to internal procedures. Often, users at law firms manually visit court websites on a one-by-one basis in order to locate cases of interest, which is onerous, labor intensive, and is prone to errors and missed cases. Shortly after the launch of QCC, Stoddard formed a partnership with CaseAware, which is a leading case management system that is widely utilized by default law firms. With the integration, users can easily initiate court case searches across the country directly from within the CaseAware CMS.

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“Staying focused on what is important and not getting distracted by the fire of the day.”

“As an entrepreneur, I see many business opportunities. In order to capture them, be strategic, but moreover just go for it.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 61

2017 VANGUARDS

CRYSTAL SUMNER

GREGORY E. TEAL

HEAD OF LEGAL | BLEND

PRESIDENT & CEO | ERNST INFORMATION SERVICES

Lending

RYSTAL Sumner leads the legal team at Blend, a Silicon Valley technology company transforming the more than $40 trillion consumer lending industry through partnerships with some of the largest, most complex lending organizations. In her role, Sumner is responsible for leading dayto-day legal affairs for the company, including risk management, commercial contracts, corporate governance and intellectual property, among other areas. Her streamlined risk management program and contract services processes have helped Blend’s customer base grow by about 350% over the last year, and the company now works with lending organizations that control 25% of the total U.S. mortgage market. Her comprehensive processes are now an integral component to departments across the company. Additionally, her work has most notably been underscored by Blend’s successful contract negotiations with two of the top five banks in the country – Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank – in addition to leading nonbank lender Movement Mortgage. As a result of her legal guidance, Blend has had the opportunity to work closely with industry regulators and governing bodies, while steadily working to establish Blend as a role model for best practices within the highly regulated financial services space. Prior to joining Blend, Sumner was a “Founders Club” member of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Channeling her experiences, she adroitly shifted her role from regulating the consumer finance marketplace to working closely with compliance and product teams to help guide Blend’s technology.

Lending

S president and CEO for the past seven years, Gregory Teal has transformed Ernst from a publishing and data company to a major industry technology player that provides fully automated fee management solutions to nearly 90% of the industry. Teal’s goal is to identify industry challenges and create solutions to meet those challenges and during the past 12 months, he has led his team successfully through a perfect storm. In the past year, Ernst has been met with explosive growth, processing a record high of 250 million transactions through its solutions, which is up more than 100 million from the year prior. In addition, Ernst technology systems underwent a major upgrade. Rapid growth of this type impacts every facet of the business. Ernst not only successfully delivered, its clients never felt an impact and applauded it for excellent service. While Ernst’s business volume was growing dramatically, Teal expanded the company’s role in the title fee space, completing two major integrations with national underwriters. The company also instituted a new title liaison program and formally rolled out its custom Settlement Agent Gateway solution, which enables settlement agents to manage their fees in real-time and connect them to their lenders’ systems seamlessly, so that from the very first time the lender quotes a borrower, it does so with 100% accuracy. During this time, Ernst was working with many of its clients to become TRID compliant. Ernst continued to work through updated integrations with many LOSs, partner platforms and direct client solutions.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

“As a first-generation college graduate, I learned early on that success is not found, but created. My work has been largely defined by pushing boundaries that were not yet established and thus carving my own path.”

“My stepfather, Carl R. Ernst, the founder of Ernst Publishing, told me ‘To stay in front of your customers, find out what they need and how to help them and you’ll probably make some money in the process and have a successful company.’”

62 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

STEVE THOMPSON

JOE TYRRELL

PRESIDENT | PRIMELENDING

EVP, CORPORATE STRATEGY | ELLIE MAE

Lending

OR the loan originator, it has been a year of unprecedented competition. How does a company built on integrity, experience, quality and service not just survive, but flourish? In the case of PrimeLending, under the leadership of Steve Thompson, recently promoted from executive vice president of national production to president, the company decided to double down on its people and its brand by investing significant time, resources and creativity into hiring and retaining the best talent in the industry. Thompson has led the charge to make PrimeLending’s production onboarding and training programs the most comprehensive, customized and impactful in the industry. Each new loan originator receives help from an onboarding concierge to help them learn PrimeLending’s processes and systems quickly and painlessly, while also setting up their contact lists and being on call to troubleshoot any issues during their first six months. New LOs have the ability to originate loans on their first day through a 24-hour NMLS transfer process. LOs have their own website, including transitioning custom websites within two days so they’re able to start marketing their services and receiving online applications. New LOs also attend a four-day instructor-led training course at PrimeLending’s Dallas headquarters. The course includes executive-led panels and meet-and-greet sessions, product and pricing instruction, hands-on technology and system training, marketing tools overview and best practices and productivity tips.

S Ellie Mae’s executive vice president of corporate strategy, Joe Tyrrell tirelessly leads Ellie Mae’s strategy efforts, developing the company’s product roadmap, defining M&A strategies and targeting and managing corporate planning efforts that get the entire company aligned on goals and objectives for the years ahead. In recent months, he has worked to define a digital mortgage, something that the industry has yet to do. Together with Ellie Mae’s leadership team, Tyrrell is creating a path to a digital mortgage that enables lenders to close more loans, close loans faster, provide more targeted customer service and do so with complete quality, efficiency and compliance. His market research has helped the company define what parts of the mortgage process homebuyers want to do utilizing technology and what parts they still want human support for, creating a roadmap that enables lenders to be high tech and high touch. As Tyrrell’s nominator wrote: “Joe embodies the true Ellie Mae family spirit. Joe’s love and support for his wife, his daughters and now his granddaughter is beautiful to watch and was evidenced by a recent Facebook post by his daughter who wrote about how lucky she was to have a father who, after a long day at work, was visibly excited to come home and hold his grandbaby while his daughter and her husband took a break to eat dinner.”

WHAT ONE HABIT HAS MADE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE IN YOUR SUCCESS?

“I make a habit of listening more than talking. When participating in meetings or discussions, I always wait for everyone else to express their perspectives and opinions first, not so that I can have the last word, but so that I can be as informed as possible as I form my own opinion.”

“I’m a good finisher. There are a lot of people much smarter than I am, but I am good at taking a problem, new initiative or whatever, getting it organized and over the finish line.”

WHAT ONE HABIT HAS MADE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE IN YOUR SUCCESS?

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 63

2017 VANGUARDS

JOHN VELLA

JIMMY WALBY

CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER | ALTISOURCE

DEPUTY CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | NATIONWIDE TITLE CLEARING

Real Estate

Servicing

ITH more than 35 years of mortgage and real estate experience, John Vella is a proven leader and innovator in the industry. He joined Altisource in August 2013 through the acquisition of Equator Business Solutions, where he served as president and COO. In January 2015, Vella was promoted to chief revenue officer at Altisource, challenged with promoting the Altisource brand and product suite while expanding the client base. Under Vella’s leadership and partnerships, he has helped establish Altisource as a trusted, major vendor in the industry, resulting in increased revenue from the diversified client base that now includes six of the Top 10 mortgage companies. Vella has assisted in positioning Altisource in the market as one of the few vendors with an innovative, fully integrated product suite built on a best-in-class, compliant and scalable infrastructure working directly with industry influencers and executives. Vella has worked within Altisource to help drive new innovation and strategy, creating product and technology enhancements that fit the needs of clients in today’s ever-changing market. Vella has established trusted partnerships allowing for product expansion and customer satisfaction. Altisource is often recognized as a top-tier provider of services by its clients based on outstanding operational performance and customer service. Vella is also an active member in his local community and works with Habitat for Humanity. In 2016, he, along with other Altisource employees, volunteered more than 2,000 hours on projects to help build new homes for families in need.

VER the last three years, Jimmy Walby has created solutions and financial efficiencies across all areas of income and waste mitigation, including designing and implementing several different critical systems for Nationwide Title Clearing, which have allowed the company to effectively manage sales and operations across all platforms. In 2014, Walby was promoted to deputy chief operating officer from his role as vice president of finance. He successfully implemented a quality inspection area – an NTC team that reviews county requirements to find verifiable consistencies and then creates a code, which detects if that requirement has been violated on one of the company’s orders. The team locates the error and fixes it before the order is sent out. This has been one of the largest contributing factors to the company’s sub 1% reject rates, which reached an all-time low of .5% in August 2017. Walby’s current venture has been improving the company’s post-closing department. NTC has seen 300% growth in that service in the last year. To accommodate that level of growth, Walby has adjusted the company’s operations areas and is currently building this service up with a new space, enhanced equipment and a filing system. “The nature of my job often gives me an opportunity to improve on processes that aren’t viable and to find solutions that improve the company’s overall delivery of services,” he said. “A habit which I have developed over the years has been to ensure to take the time to improve any area that is not at an optimal level of performance.”

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“My drive to compete at the highest level and ensure the companies I have worked for are seen as influencers within the industry. This drive and competitive nature have led to the creation of teams that provide invaluable input at all levels.”

“Take the time to get all of information in relation to some specific endeavor. This can sometimes be difficult, tedious, or even unpopular, but at the same time it is one of the more important things you can do.”

64 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

2017 VANGUARDS

MIKE WEINBACH

TERESA WHITEHEAD

CEO | CHASE HOME LENDING

CEO | CITYWIDE HOME LOANS

Lending

URING his 14 years at JPMorgan Chase, Mike Weinbach has led teams throughout the firm, giving him broad company-wide experience. Before being named to his current role as CEO of Chase Home Lending in 2015, he ran sales, finance, and operations organizations across Consumer Banking, Business Banking, Auto Finance and Mortgage Servicing. Weinbach has built a reputation among his colleagues for a relentless focus on his team members and the customers they serve. After a difficult period for employee morale following the housing crisis, Weinbach and his team have made great strides in improving internal culture and employee experience. Weinbach puts a premium on employee engagement and morale, visiting teams during his summer roadshow tour, holding roundtables with front-line employees and encouraging local teams to host teambuilding and cultural events. Weinbach’s passion for helping families achieve their homeownership dreams is evident. He works to inspire his team to take pride in their role helping families, put the customer first in everything they do and go the extra mile to provide a great experience. It’s the right thing to do for the customer, and for the company. As the mortgage market becomes increasingly digital, Weinbach is overseeing the continued development of Chase Home Lending’s digital mortgage experience. Earlier this year, the bank announced plans to launch a digital, self-serve mortgage platform. In collaboration with Roostify, a fintech mortgage technology provider, the platform is designed to provide an improved, streamlined customer experience through enhanced mobile accessibility, digital updates, eSign capabilities and direct interactions with Chase mortgage professionals.

Lending

EO Teresa Whitehead has catapulted Citywide Home Loans to success, successfully navigating the tumultuous housing market and unprecedented regulatory oversight. Citywide was a stable, but small, mortgage banker when Whitehead became the CEO in 2012. Despite the stress of mountains of regulations, Whitehead has managed to accomplish lofty goals in the last year, with the company experiencing unprecedented growth, adding an astounding 10 branches. Even when faced with the recent plateau in the mortgage market, Citywide has grown seven-fold in the past five years, going from $400 million in annual volume in 2010 to more than $3 billion in annual production in 2016. Prior to 2017, Whitehead and Steve Goorman, Citywide’s president and founder, comprised the entire executive team. In the midst of this season of growth, Whitehead built an executive team from the ground up, adding experienced professionals and invested leader. This executive team growth is a direct result of Whitehead’s insistence of never losing sight of the company’s endgame: a satisfied borrower. In the summer of 2014, Whitehead created the program Makeovers from the Heart, a charity initiative that makes over homes for deserving families. The program was launched in November of 2014 and each holiday season, Citywide goes into the community and solicits nominations of deserving families. To date, Citywide has made-over 19 homes. Some projects have been small, just a single room in the house. Others have been complete makeovers, including plumbing, electrical, flooring, appliances, furniture, new kitchens and new bathrooms.

WHAT’S THE SECRET TO YOUR SUCCESS?

WHAT ONE HABIT HAS MADE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE IN YOUR SUCCESS?

“Set the right strategy. Build the right team. Help them succeed.”

“Being able to take a beating and still move forward.”

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 65

2017 VANGUARDS

MELINDA WILNER

BRUCE WITHERELL

COO | UNITED WHOLESALE MORTGAGE

CO-FOUNDER AND CEO| PROMONTORY MORTGAGEPATH

Lending

S the chief operating officer at United Wholesale Mortgage, Melinda Wilner leads more than 1,100 employees in underwriting, operations and IT. She sets a new standard for excellence by focusing on efficiency, accessibility and service. Wilner strives to make the lending process easier and more friendly for mortgage brokers and borrowers nationwide. Operationally, UWM made major strides over the past 12 months. Under Wilner’s guidance, it made operational enhancements in 2016 to take its business to another level, improving efficiency and output by 50% over the course of one year. In 2016, UWM produced a company-record $23 billion in loan volume – a 78% year-over-year increase from 2015 – and is on pace to surpass $30 billion in 2017 loan volume. Through the first six months of 2017, UWM grew its wholesale market share to 13.3%, while market share through the rest of the industry has declined. The company has been consistently setting new monthly company records for loan submissions and closings over the past 12 months. Over a 12-month period, UWM increased loan production volume by nearly 50%, up to $13.1 billion, and increased the number of closed loans by 33%, up by more than 12,000 loans. Wilner has also overseen the roll-out of innovative proprietary tools that proved to be a difference-maker in the industry, including UWM’s custom loan origination system, EASE, as well as the launch of UClose, a self-closing platform that empowers mortgage brokers to go from clear-to-close to closing in just minutes.

VER the past 12 months, Bruce Witherell has taken a simple, but bold idea—combine cutting-edge technology with deep domain knowledge and focus it strategically on the mortgage origination process—and transformed it into the Promontory MortgagePath Group, a fintech company that combines deep domain knowledge with advanced technological know-how to solve complex mortgage challenges across the origination, underwriting and secondary marketing continuum. Founded by Witherell and Gene Ludwig, former comptroller of currency, the Promontory MortgagePath Group has two primary businesses: PromonTech, its technology development arm, and Promontory Fulfillment Services, a white-label mortgage fulfillment service. Both units had successful launches in 2017. PromonTech works collaboratively with experts in production, compliance and secondary marketing to address gaps in the digital mortgage process. At this year’s Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual conference, PromonTech unveiled the next-generation of point-of-sale solutions, called the Borrower Wallet. “Today, lenders are threatened by the disruptive force of technology, haunted by the lessons of the financial crisis and hamstrung by the plethora of regulations that grew out of the crisis,” said Witherell. “We’ve developed a collaborative, innovative approach to identifying and validating the applicant and their qualifying data. Borrowers can explore their mortgage options on either a self-serve or loan officer-assisted basis, using any personal device.”

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR SECRET TO SUCCESS?

“A crazy strong work ethic and a passion for making each day better than the day before. Most people who give it all they’ve got will look back and truly be amazed by what they were able to accomplish—things they never imagined were possible.”

“First, hire the absolute best people you can—not just the ones you know. Don’t be afraid to be the dumbest guy in the room, at times. Be confident in your own point of view, be willing to go with your gut, and have a team that trusts you.”

66 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

ON THIN ICE Expanded HMDA reporting represents new risks for lenders By Sarah Wheeler

68 HOUSINGWIRE â?ą DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 69

ompliance risk is a quiet danger, like crossing a lake that’s still in the process of slowly freezing over. Is the ice solid enough to hold your weight? What will happen when you put pressure on the weak spots? The only way to safely cross is to have a plan and go slowly, testing the ice before each step and looking out for cracks along the way. Lenders gearing up for the implementation of new Home Mortgage Disclosure Act rules are in that process now, although with the deadline looming on Jan. 1, 2018, there are still lots of questions. In fact, compared to the sound and fury surrounding TRID, when it seemed every other conversation or article was counting down the days until the deadline (and then the deadline moved), the industry’s anticipation and preparation for HMDA changes seems eerily calm. It’s possible that after a decade of adjusting to multiple business-changing regulations, lenders and other mortgage companies have become adept at incorporating new requirements into their processes. It’s also possible they have compliance fatigue. Either way, the updated HMDA reporting requirements represent a new set of risks that lenders need to pay attention to.

BIG CHANGES The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act was enacted in 1975 and implemented by the Federal Reserve Board’s Regulation C to help prevent discriminatory and predatory lending practices. From its inception, banks and other lenders have provided data on the number of mortgage loans made, loan amounts, and various borrower characteristics, giving consumers, investors and government regulators a window into their lending process. The act has gone through various updates, but the newest HMDA requirements are the most comprehensive yet, modifying the triggers for lender coverage, modifying the loans that are reportable and expanding the data that must be collected. After a confusing array of triggers in 2017, for 2018 the triggers are much more straightforward: an institution will be subject to Regulation C if it originated at least 25 covered, closed-end mortgage loans or at least 500 covered, open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years. The regulation originally set the threshold at 100 open-end lines of credit, but after negative industry feedback, it was changed to 500, where it will stay until 2020 before reverting to the lower number. Under the new rules, the data points that lenders must 70 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

collect more than doubles, from 23 to 48, and 20 of the existing fields are modified (see sidebar on page 73). Some of the new data fields were mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act, while others were added by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

NAVIGATING THE TERRAIN Like all regulations before it, implementing the new HMDA requirements presents some significant challenges. One of the biggest is collecting information early enough in the loan process so that if the loan falls out, lenders don’t have to go back and try to get that information from the consumer. This might require updating policies and procedures to cover these scenarios. “One of the lenders’ worst fears is that consumers will start going through the loan process and give enough information to trigger a reportable transaction, but then don’t get far enough to give all of this data,” said John Haring, director of compliance enablement at Ellie Mae. “Going back to borrowers after they have withdrawn their application could feel invasive, since they have already told you they decided to go work with someone else. It’s hard enough to deal with happy homeowners who closed on their loan — good luck doing that on the loan you denied. If you missed your window of opportunity to get those 48 questions answered, getting them after the fact is extremely challenging.” Another challenge comes from the expanded reporting on borrower ethnicity. In the past, if borrowers did not want to furnish their ethnicity, race or gender, lenders were required to determine those factors based on visual information and the borrower’s last name. Today, borrowers have more categories and subcategories to choose from in these areas, and for the first time, borrowers can choose more than one category for ethnicity, race and gender. If borrowers don’t choose to identify themselves, lenders are still required to choose for them, using the visual cues/last name best-guess method. However, if a borrower chooses a category that doesn’t seem to fit with the lender’s visual inspection, the lender is not allowed to change that self-identification. There are several potential problems with this system. Lenders will be judged on this information, yet there is no objective filter they can apply to the data provided. If the person appears to be of one race and gender, but fills in a different race and gender, how will that be evaluated when judging potential patterns of discrimination? Surely the demographic data gathered by the lender

will be matched up at some point with data collected through the borrower’s Social Security number and birth date, and found inaccurate. What happens then? And what is to stop borrowers or lenders from purposely reporting inaccurate data in these fields? If there is no objective standard to compare the data to, how could that information be proved to be false? “One of the inherent challenges of fair lending is it assumes you are working off an accurate set of data,” Haring said. In a further complication, the race and ethnicity sections also include free form fill-in-the-blank data fields that let borrowers define their race and ethnicity in a manner that seems to defy automation. Including those

manual data fields introduces another area of uncertainty for lenders — and regulators. “Here for the first time, the consumer, who previously had to select from a menu of choices, can now also write in their own responses. One of the things we just don’t know is how consumers are going to interact with that to provide their own response,” Haring said. Helping borrowers navigate these new areas will require a hands-on approach by loan officers, who might need training on talking through potentially sensitive subjects. “On one hand, the bureau is greatly expanding the amount of information they want to collect, and on the other hand, they are much more strict about the quality

“One of the things we just don’t know is how consumers are going to interact with that to provide their own response.” — John Haring, Ellie Mae

WHY FAIR LENDING IS STILL AN ISSUE The share of minority borrowers dropped in the period between 2007 and 2014 (the latest timeframe we have data for) not only for the 10 biggest banks, which issued 13% of U.S. home loans in 2014, but also among all other bank and nonbank lenders. Here is the share of applicants among all approved mortgage applicants.

10 biggest banks:

All other bank and nonbank lenders:

Black applicants:

7.8% 2007 share

5.3% 2014 share

Hispanic applicants:

7.5% 2007 share

5.5% 2014 share

Hispanic applicants:

10.6%

7.4%

10.7%

9.1%

2007 share

2014 share

2007 share

2014 share

SOURCE: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 71

“How is that information going to be used, and what is the risk to the lender if the data is considered outside of context that may or may not be accurate?” — Maurice Jourdain-Earl

72 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

of that information,” Haring said. “The tolerance for error on HMDA reporting is extremely tight, requiring a perfect match of more information that is held to higher standards.” In addition, poor data quality by itself can be the basis for action against lenders. Speaking on a HMDA panel at the MBA Annual Convention and Expo in October, Mitchel Kider, chairman and managing partner at Weiner Brodsky Kider said, “Substance is important, but the accuracy of HMDA data is independently important as well. Does this [poor data quality] mean you have to resubmit? No, this means civil money penalties as well. It is a reflection of having a poor compliance management system in all other areas.” Adding to lender anxiety, the portal they must use to submit HMDA data was released in beta version in November, giving lenders a scant two months to test their processes. Technically, March 1, 2018, is the first deadline to submit HMDA data through the new portal, but lenders would like to be able to test the process ahead of that deadline. “From the lender perspective, they aren’t going to feel like they are done until they have been able to test the process from end to end. The inability to do that causes uncertainty and doubt,” Haring said. “I think the bureau looks at it differently, because the big push for them is Q1 2019, when they will be accepting files that have all the data points collected in 2018. For lenders, Jan. 1 is the deadline because they don’t want to have to be halfway through the year before they get access to the platform and then have to get additional data into loan files,” Haring said. The bureau is also still deciding which of the new data points are going to be released to the public, accepting comments on the subject as late as November. At issue is how to protect borrowers’ privacy when so much is revealed in the new reporting. As Richard Andreano noted in an article published by Ballard Spahr’s Consumer Finance Monitor in September, “there are concerns that by combining the current publicly available HMDA data with other data sources, the identity of each applicant can be determined. As the applicant’s income is one data item that is publicly disclosed, there is a concern that the income of individual applicants can be determined.” In response to that concern, the bureau has proposed releasing some data points as ranges, including ages, loan amounts, property value and debt-to-income ratio. Another worrisome area is the security of all this confidential data stored by the CFPB. In 2017, the CFPB’s

THE NEW HMDA FIELDS INCLUDE: • Mortgage loan originator NMLS identification

• Lender credits

• Credit score

• Loan term

• Combined loan-to-value (CLTV) ratio

• Prepayment penalties

• Borrower’s debt-to-income (DTI) ratio

• Non-amortizing loan features

• Borrower-paid origination charges

• Interest rate

• Points and fees

• Rate spread for all loans

• Discount points Office of Inspector General identified “ensuring an effective information security program” as the CFPB’s most significant management challenge, one that is now even more important.

INCREASED RISKS In an overview of the new HMDA requirements, the Mortgage Bankers Association outlined three areas of greatest impact to the industry: extensive implementation costs, privacy and data concerns, and increased litigation risk. That last one is perhaps the one keeping executives up at night. “HMDA has been a major source of fair lending claims in the past, and the new data will allow greater analysis of application and loan data to evaluate impacts on protected classes. While HMDA’s purpose is to shine light on lending practices, data can be misused to present unfair claims-forcing costly litigation defense, and/or settlements and causing significant reputational harm,” the MBA wrote. Indeed, the data collected and stored in such a tidy digital package broadcasts a siren song beckoning regulators to find everything they need in one place. In the past, HMDA reporting could trigger a fair lending review, but did not contain enough information on its own for regulators to determine discrimination. With the HMDA changes, the data will provide a complete picture for regulators, and lending pattern outliers can easily trigger an investigation. “Your lending practices are about to become a wideopen book,” Kider said. “When there is more information available to the public and to regulators, there will be a lot more scrutiny and potential liability.” “Now, all that data is available in a consistent electronic format and it will be very easy for others to compare you to peers, to drill down to specific information that was more difficult to obtain before,” Kider said. The new data includes pricing information, origination charges, discount points, lender credits, interest rates, combined LTV ratio, credit score and DTI ratio. Analyzing

SOURCE: THE MORTGAGE BANKERS ASSOCIATION

those data points reveals a lot about lender practices, including what kind of loan programs they offer to different borrowers. Maurice Jourdain-Earl, managing director at ComplianceTech and another panelist at MBA, pointed out that with this library of data, regulators will be able to more easily identify peer lenders with similar business models so that they can compare outcomes. “All of the data is going to be there and available to do these comparisons,” Jourdain-Earl said. “This is a more granular level than has ever been exposed before,” Haring said. “How is that information going to be used, and what is the risk to the lender if the data is considered outside of context that may or may not be accurate?” And for the first time, that risk extends all the way to the individual loan officer who originated the loan. Because the NMLS number is part of the data collected, regulators can scrutinize even individual patterns of lending. “Historically, HMDA and fair lending complaints are leveraged against institutions, because all of the information is gathered at an institutional level. With this new information, what will be interesting is whether that opens the door to actions against not only institutions, but against a single employee,” Haring said.

SILVER LINING? Despite the challenges and risks inherent in the new HMDA rules, there is an upside for lenders willing to use the data to improve their process. Gaining better insight into their own lending patterns means lenders can address any issues ahead of regulatory action. “There is a wealth of information available to regulators, and to the public — and most importantly to you. Take advantage of it,” Kider said. Jourdain-Earl agreed. “We are going to experience a major paradigm shift, and HMDA can be either friend or foe. The responsible thing for lenders to do, is understand what their data is saying,” he said. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 73

SPONSORED CONTENT

Heading into the new year, the mortgage industry faces a variety of challenges, but also great possibilities. With change as the only constant, companies will have to be more adept than ever to take advantage of favorable circumstances while mitigating their risk. HousingWire profiles seven companies approaching 2018 with wellfounded confidence, ready to adapt what worked in the past to the very different needs of the future. These companies are way out front, leading the way into a year full of opportunity.

74 HOUSINGWIRE â?ą DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

DEVAL Ellie Mae Nationwide Title Clearing PrimeLending Roostify Stearns Lending United Wholesale Mortgage

76 77 78 79 80 81 82

HOUSINGWIRE â?ą DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 75

SPONSORED CONTENT

FAST FACTS ` DEVAL launched its operations in the Washington, D.C. metro area on July 23, 2003. ` DEVAL’s mission is to provide exemplary services centered around the loan lifecycle while educating its customer base. ` DEVAL is a mortgage company that focuses on educating customers and providing information to those customers in their native language. DEVAL 1231 Greenway Drive, Suite 200 Irving, TX 75038 703-962-1879 deval.us

DEVAL 2017 was a year of remarkable growth for DEVAL. The Hispanic-focused, woman-owned nonbank servicer expanded its services by launching its own origination channel, Your Home Now Mortgage, in October. The Your Home Now Mortgage platform features a Spanish language counterpart, Su Casa Ahora Mortgage, that was designed specifically for the Spanish-speaking market. While having a bilingual origination team is very important, having a local presence with expertise in originations and homeownership programs, who is a native Spanish speaker or fluent in Spanish, is invaluable. “Our biggest opportunity is to support the ever-increasing diverse populations in the United States with language-specific information in both lending and servicing,” said DEVAL Founder and President Debbie Garcia-Gratacos. Garcia-Gratacos is an attorney with a background in real estate and finance, including originations and underwriting. She created DEVAL after the downturn of the financial market and today the company is licensed to conduct loan servicing activities nationwide, including Puerto Rico. Su Casa Ahora provides a wide range of communications and disclosures in Spanish, to effectively communicate with borrowers about the needs of their loan. “Hispanics are an essential market for the mortgage lending industry. With all signs showing a rebound in the housing market, now is the time to ensure that the customer communication is strengthened, positioning the mortgage finance market to prosper by serving the Hispanic

“

community and providing Hispanic families the opportunity to build long-term wealth,” GarciaGratacos said. DEVAL also has an internal affordable housing unit which provides technical assistance, and housing solutions to a range of clients including the Department of Housing and Urban Development and housing authorities nationwide. If a homeowner or family is facing homelessness, the company offers solutions to borrowers by connecting them to HUD’s Information Resource Center, providing information on local and state housing programs, area housing authorities and matching borrowers to local housing counselors. In total, DEVAL offers more than 200 mortgage products, including qualified and non-qualified products. The company works with borrowers who have experienced credit problems and may have credit sensitive issues such as bankruptcies, foreclosure and short sales. Looking ahead to 2018, DEVAL anticipates meeting the challenges of breaking into new markets by working with its grassroots network of Realtors and offering an array of competitive mortgage products to its customers. The company aims to have loan documentation available in multiple languages in 2018, as well as properly rolling out the technology that support this multilingual platform. “We are forward thinking; we understand that the U.S. is made up of diverse people with diverse backgrounds and languages. As such, the industry must adapt to this group of future homeowners,” Garcia-Gratacos said.

Our biggest opportunity is to support the ever-increasing diverse populations in the United States with languagespecific information in both lending and servicing.”

76 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

SPONSORED CONTENT

Ellie Mae 2017 was a digital turning point for Ellie Mae. The leading platform provider for the mortgage finance industry is accelerating the availability of a true digital mortgage solution for lenders of all sizes. In a recent Ellie Mae survey of 3,000 Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers the prevailing sentiment was that across generations and genders, borrowers want a mortgage experience that combines speed, convenience, and security with personal interaction. Today’s borrowers expect transparency, service and speed, and a human touch. To meet these requirements, lenders must offer an engaging, intuitive user experience that continues even after the application has been submitted. Lenders should have access to current and historical data on every individual borrower, and provide an intuitive borrower portal that offers a simple, transparent interaction, the ability to easily upload documents, and real-time status updates, with the ability to talk to someone at any point in the entire process. To help with the company’s digital transformation and the quest to make everything automatable automated, Ellie Mae acquired sales acceleration platform Velocify. Velocify provides cloud-based intelligent sales automation solutions that drive effective and efficient sales processes and help improve lead conversion rates. Ellie Mae President and CEO Jonathan Corr said the acquisition accelerates the company’s delivery of a true digital mortgage solution for the industry.

FAST FACTS “In the coming months, we will integrate Velocify’s lead management, engagement and distribution capabilities with our own CRM and Consumer Connect solutions to help lenders turn consumer interest into applications through a personalized, high-tech and human-touch experience,” Corr said. As lenders learn what it takes to engage all borrowers, they must also adjust to a purchase-centric market with lower volumes, higher expectations of on-time origination dates being met, and tougher scrutiny of the bottom line. In this environment, the savvy lender is focused on reducing the cost of origination, which is now at nearly $8,000 per loan, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The lender also recognizes the need for automation, exception-based processing, and the ability to better leverage data in all aspects of the origination process. The true digital mortgage allows for a fundamental shift from “checkers checking checkers” and “stare and compare” reviews to exception-based processing. Now, personal document review is required only when a loan does not meet established rules and an exception is identified. This level of automation reduces time to originate and lowers the cost of origination. It also supplies loan agents with everything they need to know about the status of the loan so that they can provide updates to the consumer and provide that personalized human touch expected. Faster processing and improved rates of customer satisfaction lead to higher pull-through rates and better business results.

` Ellie Mae was founded in 1997 in Pleasanton, California. ` Ellie Mae’s North Star is to automate everything automatable in the residential mortgage industry and to be the technology that powers the American Dream of homeownership. ` Ellie Mae is the leading platform provider of mortgage technology for the residential mortgage industry. We touch 1 in 3 mortgages in the United States and have over 230,000 contracted users of our solutions as of Q3 2017. ` Ellie Mae’s 2016 revenue totaled $360.3 million, up 42% from $253.9 million in 2015. ELLIE MAE 4200 Rosewood Drive, Suite 500 Pleasanton, CA 94588 888-955-9100 EllieMae.com

“

In the coming months, we will integrate Velocify’s lead management, engagement and distribution capabilities with our own CRM and Consumer Connect solutions to help lenders turn consumer interest into applications...” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 77

SPONSORED CONTENT

FAST FACTS ` Nationwide Title Clearing Inc. (NTC) is an expert research, audit and document processing provider for the nation’s largest investors, servicers and lenders. ` NTC’s mission is to deliver the highest level of accuracy in document processing and research services that protect homeowners and assist the mortgage banking industry while also preserving the nation’s land records. ` Largest lien release provider in the world. ` Over 70% eRecord rate, less than 1% reject rate, 99.8% compliance rate. ` NTC employs over 600 employees in three states. ` Recognized as a Tampa Bay Times Top 100 Workplace for 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016. Nationwide Title Clearing, Inc. 2100 Alt. 19 N. Palm Harbor, FL 34683 727-771-4000 X 333 nationwidetitleclearing.com

Nationwide Title Clearing Nationwide Title Clearing had an incredible 2017, achieving record delivery quality and growing revenue by 340% year over year. But the company, which provides expert research, audit and document processing for the nation’s largest investors, servicers and lenders, has even bigger plans for 2018. “The biggest challenge in 2018 will be the continually changing landscape of our industry, but that has also been an asset to the company every year,” said John Hillman, CEO. “NTC has established itself to be extremely flexible in meeting the changing needs of our clients. We stick to our core services — lien release and research — but remain flexible to change and evolve to meet custom demands of our clients.” In 2018, that evolution will include expanding its research and remediation capabilities with its new Curative Vault document custody solution. This solution is a complete custody process that goes well beyond storage and inventory to include a collateral review to real-life industry standards, remediation exception reports, perfecting of the collateral file and more. “Clients won’t need to settle for only file storage or inventory of their collateral anymore,” Hillman said. “NTC’s customized service not only conducts reviews of collateral to real-life industry standards, but also remediates exceptions and works toward perfecting collateral. It’s an all-in-one solution that has appealed to a large segment of our target audience.”

“

NTC is able to deliver a more robust process by chasing down missing documents, verifying lien position and assignment chains against land records, and where possible, curing the assignment and endorsement exceptions and facilitating any needed documents (allonges, title policies, etc.) to support loan sales and other life-of-loan events. “Financial services firms are paying too much and only getting a partial document custody process,” said Michael O’Connell, chief operations officer at NTC. “This exposes them to risk because in too many cases the collateral files are incomplete or inaccurate, making it impossible to make good decisions should the loan go into default, become part of a securitized pool or go up for sale. “Document custody has traditionally been the last line of defense for a quality portfolio, but without the research and remediation components, it simply can’t get the job done,” O’Connell said. NTC boasts a 99.8% compliance rate, which Hillman attributes to NTC’s unique focus throughout its 25-year history. “We accomplish our staggering compliance rate by integrating the human touch and attention to detail with malleable, user-friendly technology and a systemic and systematic approach to error correction,” Hillman said. “Our clients can depend on us to stay ahead of regulatory standards, this is why our reputation for excellence is renowned in our industry.”

NTC’s customized service not only conducts reviews of collateral to real-life industry standards, but also remediates exceptions and works toward perfecting collateral.”

78 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

SPONSORED CONTENT

PrimeLending Based on more than 30 years serving the mortgage industry, PrimeLending has created the ideal ecosystem to support how both customers and business partners want to experience the digital home loan process. The top 10 purchase lender offers much more than the wide range of loan options, expert guidance and fast process people expect—PrimeLending has transformed the home loan experience by providing a clearer view, easier access and the freedom for borrowers and agents/builders to choose where, when and how to engage with the mortgage process. Currently, 86% of PrimeLending’s home loans are completed online, with 30% coming through smartphones or tablets. It’s a new era of home buying, but PrimeLending is prepared. “Everything our customers and business partners need to manage their part of the mortgage process is available to them from the palm of their hands,” said Tim Elkins, executive vice president of technology at PrimeLending. “Our process is more than mobile friendly, it’s mobile-maximized for how most people choose to do business.” PrimeLending’s unique mobile app for real estate agents and homebuilders sends real-time status updates and information requests mirroring the notifications their borrowers receive. “We really are unique in the way we empower our business partners to work with their clients and stay in the loop during the mortgage process,” said Elkins. “We’ve developed a way to give agents and builders an accurate, up-to-date view of their clients’ applications they can access at anytime from anywhere.” PrimeLending business partners are never caught off guard and always equipped to answer their clients’ questions at any time. The app lets agents and builders: • Stay informed about the progress of their clients’ loans. • Know before a loan is behind schedule so they can take action. • Choose how to receive notifications by app, text message, email or all three. “We know expediting the process is essential, but we also know security is of the utmost importance to our customers,” said Elkins. “Our system offers bank-level security so everyone can feel

FAST FACTS safe knowing their personal documents and confidential information are protected at every step.” When it comes to creating a digital mortgage experience for borrowers, PrimeLending delivers all the cutting-edge advantages without losing the benefits that come from a personal relationship with a home loan expert. Here are some of the most popular borrower features: • When prequalified homebuyers are ready to submit an offer on a hot property, they can instantly create a property-specific prequalification letter using their smartphone and immediately include the letter with their offer—anytime, any day and without talking to their loan officer. • To submit required documents, such as a driver’s license copy, borrowers can use a smart phone camera to take a photo and upload the image directly into the secure system. • Borrowers can allow PrimeLending to digitally transfer up-to-date documents, like pay stubs, bank statements and W2 transcripts, directly from the bank, employer and IRS. • Start, save, stop and pick right back up in the online application, making it convenient for borrowers to complete the application from any connected device on their schedule. • Instantly pay fees via a secure online system for required services such as appraisal fees to make sure the closing stays on schedule. • Receive text messages and/or email confirmations of each milestone reached and reminders of any steps on hold pending the borrower’s action. • Securely review and esign important documents (where allowed) at a moment’s notice, eliminating the need to meet in person. PrimeLending’s commitment is to continually deploy the best innovative technologies to make the home loan process enjoyable, exciting and easy for everyone involved. “Our Loan Officers don’t hide behind our digital tools, they use them to enhance the relationship with homebuyers and business partners,” said Elkins. “We have and always will value the relationships and personal touch with every customer. Whether someone chooses to stay digital or visit one of our branches, getting them the ideal loan through a simple and hassle-free process is always our goal.”

` Top 10 national mortgage lender. ` More than 30 years exclusively focused on the mortgage industry. ` Extensive range of home loan products, including conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, jumbo, renovation and more . ` 96% customer satisfaction rating and 5-Star Zillow lender. ` Award-winning company culture known for integrity, respect and outstanding service. PrimeLending 18111 Preston Road Dallas, TX 75252 800-317-7463 PrimeLending.com

HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 79

SPONSORED CONTENT

FAST FACTS ` Founded in San Francisco in 2012. ` Mission: to give consumers a smooth, anxiety-free loan experience, while helping lenders close more loans in less time. ` Enterprise SaaS provider to mortgage originators of all sizes. ` Experienced more than 200 times growth since 2015.

Roostify 303 Second St., Suite 325 San Francisco, CA 94107 888-908-2470 roostify.com

Roostify 2017 was a momentous year for Roostify. The SaaS provider went live with several prominent customers, including Top 100 lenders JPMorgan Chase and Guild Mortgage. The company also more than doubled its headcount and made significant investments in security, compliance and product management resources. Roostify continues to set the pace as both an industry thought leader and product innovator. One example is the company’s recent release of Decision Builder, which simplifies loan options so that consumers can evaluate, understand and select the loan that fits their needs. “The whole idea behind this product is that the consumer today doesn’t have a lot of access to real information about their loan options,” CEO and Co-founder Rajesh Bhat said. “Because they can do this before they even apply, they can carefully think it over without the pressure of sitting in an LO’s office. As for the loan officer, they get clients who are serious about what they want, and are ready to start moving forward with a realistic scenario.” As the company looks to 2018, the biggest challenge for the industry is one Roostify is helping to resolve: bringing the industry online. “Two or so years ago, the concept of an endto-end online home-buying experience was intriguing to imagine, but the path to achieve that was unknown,” Bhat said. “The industry has advanced since then and the question is no longer ‘if,’ but ‘when’ and ‘how.’” In 2018, Roostify is focusing on the customer and how it can improve the home-buying expe-

“

rience. The company will be introducing a number of advances in online mortgage to empower the consumer to self-serve at more points of the process – eventually offering end-to-end selfserve capabilities. A “digital mortgage experience” started out as simply a nice-looking application that consumers could fill out online, and maybe a document upload folder, Bhat explained. “Now, the application is just the tip of the iceberg. The platform we offer allows more and more of the post-application home-buying process — such as asset verification, purchasing homeowners’ insurance and scheduling an appraisal — to be convenient and transparent to consumers.” “Our biggest opportunity is to expand the narrative around the digitization of home lending,” Bhat said. “Much of the discussion today has been centered on the benefits of intake and aggregation of consumer data in the origination process.” Bhat said that in the company’s view, true transformation begins with overhauling the workflow of lenders and third parties, such as real estate agents, title services and others, that are tied to the mortgage origination process. “Much of our product supports this online workflow enablement today. However, for lenders to see the larger opportunity to materially reduce the cost of origination and contemplate new business models altogether, we need to think beyond data aggregation. We will be building out this larger narrative over the next year,” Bhat said.

Now, the application is just the tip of the iceberg. The platform we offer allows more and more of the post-application home-buying process to be convenient and transparent to consumers.”

80 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

SPONSORED CONTENT

Stearns Lending During the last 12 months, Stearns Lending has experienced a hiring boom, revamped its corporate culture and launched a new mobile and desktop application, Stearns Digital, that allows homebuyers to complete their mortgage application 100% digitally. The company has also rolled out personalized individual MLO sites and a new stearns.com. “We’ve been thrilled with the rollout of Stearns Digital, which is an all-encompassing app that enables digital completion of the entire mortgage process. Our MLOs tell us that incorporating Stearns Digital into their business is like having an additional assistant to meet their customers’ needs — and it increases their loan capacity,” Stearns CEO David Schneider said. The app features the 1003 mortgage application using a question-based format, making it easy for customers to complete the form within the app or online. With just a few clicks, the app securely verifies income, employment and assets – all electronically. After it is verified, the information flows directly to loan underwriting, where qualified borrowers quickly receive a firm loan approval. In addition to the mobile app that the company’s MLOs and customers use, the company also offers an exclusive app, Stearns Digital Partner, for its real estate and builder partners. This app enables real estate professionals to remain tightly integrated with the mortgage process, which keeps things moving along quickly for everyone.

FAST FACTS The future looks bright for Stearns Lending, and COO James Hecht explained the company is focusing on providing MLOs with the resources they need to achieve their highest goals, and enhancing and continuing to develop its leading-edge technology. “We are very optimistic about 2018 and beyond,” Hecht said. “Two of the features we’re most excited about are eClosing and Pre-Sales. With a continued emphasis on customer convenience, eClosing delivers on the expectation that our clients can complete the entire mortgage process from any location.” The Pre-Sales feature accomplishes this by making it easy to engage customers earlier in the home-buying process. MLS providers will notify Stearns’ MLOs when prospects begin searching for properties, enabling the Stearns team to assist house hunters with pre-qualification from the very beginning, so that borrowers are looking for homes in the right price range. Looking ahead to the coming year, Schneider said one of the greatest challenges the company faces is the increasingly low inventory available for homebuyers. “However, because we provide a fantastic turnaround on approvals and deliver superior customer service, we’re able to be there when a property is available and the buyer is ready to take action. “We help them land their new home quickly and enthusiastically,” Schneider said.

` Founded in 1989 by Glenn Stearns in Santa Ana, California. ` Only takes 1 minute and 42 seconds to input a loan application on Stearns Digital. ` Stearns’ Retail is growing across the country. Stearns Lending 4 Hutton Centre, Santa Ana, CA 714-513-7777 Stearns.com

“

Our MLOs tell us that incorporating Stearns Digital into their business is like having an additional assistant to meet their customers’ needs — and it increases their loan capacity.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 81

SPONSORED CONTENT

FAST FACTS ` Founded in 1986 in Birmingham, Michigan. ` Increased loan production volume by 125% in last two years. ` Mission: To revolutionize mortgage lending through innovative people, cutting-edge technology, elite client service, integrity, hard work and excellence. United Wholesale Mortgage 1414 E. Maple Road Troy, MI 48083 800-981-8898 uwm.com

United Wholesale Mortgage United Wholesale Mortgage topped off its record-breaking production last year by meeting an even bigger goal in 2017: closing more than 100,000 loans. “It’s a testament to the great team members we have here at UWM who have done an amazing job, as well as the great mortgage brokers we partner with every day,” said Mat Ishbia, president and CEO of UWM. “One of the things we’re proudest of is how well our clients are doing; how much they’re growing their businesses.” The company continues to be a champion for mortgage brokers, helping that segment grow to 15% of the market by educating borrowers and providing the critical tools brokers need to deliver an exceptional customer experience. This year UWM introduced the Blink and Virtual e-Closing platforms, bringing the automated loan process full circle, and revolutionizing the way brokers can make the loan process easier for borrowers. “We’re going to do everything we can from a marketing and public relations standpoint to get messaging out that supports brokers as the best option for getting a mortgage,” Ishbia said. “Especially as Millennials continue to make up a growing majority of the purchase market, there is a lot of potential for us to raise awareness of brokers and provide education to help first-time buyers make better decisions.” The company also relaunched its website as an all-inclusive hub for the vital information brokers need. UWM did a lot of research to find out which content and tools brokers most fre-

“

quently looked for online, and built UWM.com to be the destination to fulfill all those needs, saving brokers time as they no longer have to visit different sites for news or to compare rates or use a mortgage calculator. That broker-first commitment translates to impressive results for UWM’s brokers, who grew their business by 23% over the last year, as the larger industry declined by 17%. And UWM’s structure as a wholesale-only lender means that their brokers’ clients remain in the brokers’ pipeline. “Client retention is one of the biggest challenges that brokers face, simply because of the nature of the business. The fact that we only do wholesale has really helped us build strong relationships with brokers because they can trust us,” Ishbia said. UWM is looking forward to a busy 2018, when it will expand into new headquarters to take its operations and client service to another level. “Moving forward, there’s a lot of opportunity for us to continue bringing new technology and services to market and building meaningful relationships with mortgage brokers to make their jobs easier,” Ishbia said. “We also want to take on an even stronger leadership role within the wholesale channel itself, doing what we can to grow mortgage broker market share from 15% to 20% and beyond. More can be done to effectively communicate the benefits of brokers to borrowers, loan officers and real estate agents, and we want to lead that charge.”

The fact that we only do wholesale has really helped us build strong relationships with brokers because they can trust us.”

82 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Campaign Circuit

84 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Campaign Circuit

Castro and Cordray eye new positions HENSARLING STEPS BACK BY BEN LANE AND BRENA SWANSON Since the surprise election of President Donald Trump in 2016, some of the most compelling stories have concerned what is happening in and around Washington, D.C. Professionals from the mortgage finance industry have long traveled in and out of the seat of power, sometimes serving as elected officials, advisors, lobbyists or regulators. In this section, we seek to chronicle some of those moves, keeping our readers abreast of the most significant news on the political front. CASTRO FOR PRESIDENT? The current secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign against President Donald Trump in 2016, but is a former HUD secretary making plans to run against Trump in 2020? It appears so. According to a November article in the Houston Chronicle, former HUD Secretary Julián Castro is seriously considering running for president in 2020. From the Houston Chronicle: “I might,” Castro told more than 350 people at a political conference near the University of Texas on Sunday morning. Castro, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Barack Obama, said the country needs a very different president than what is in office now and he will spend 2018 weighing a bid. Castro was viewed as a rising star in the Democratic Party when the Obama administration chose him in June 2014 to replace out-

going HUD secretary Shaun Donovan, who went on to serve as the director of the Office of Management and Budget. Castro came to HUD from San Antonio, where he served as mayor. Castro was the second San Antonio mayor to lead HUD, following the path laid out by Henry Cisneros, who served as President Bill Clinton’s HUD secretary. Castro’s term ended in January 2017, when he was replaced by current HUD Secretary Ben Carson. But Castro’s political career didn’t end there; far from it, in fact. Castro was rumored to be on the short list to serve as a potential nominee for vice president under former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, but the position eventually went to Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. While at HUD, Castro toned down his political rhetoric, although he did run afoul of federal election laws for discussing Clinton during an 2016 interview. But since leaving the government, Castro has been outspoken about his issues with the Trump administration. Earlier this year, Castro discussed the Trump administration’s budget proposal with HousingWire, telling our magazine editor, Sarah Wheeler, that the budget’s proposed cuts to HUD funding were dangerous. “There’s no vision here,” Castro said in March. “It’s almost like a cartoon cutout of an ideologue’s conception of the budget: just spend more money on defense and tear apart social programs. It’s very short-sighted on housing, education, health.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 85

Campaign Circuit

And speaking at the UT-Austin event, Castro’s feelings about the Trump administration were even stronger. Again from the Houston Chronicle: (Castro) said the country needs someone “fundamentally honest” in the White House. “We’ve had too much lying out of the White House,” Castro said. “This administration is a disaster on so many issues,” Castro said. “This just is not working. He’s completely in over his head.” CORDRAY RESIGNS Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Richard Cordray announced on Nov. 15 that he would be stepping down from his position by the end of November. Cordray’s term was set to expire next year, but rather than waiting it out (or being fired by President Donald Trump), Cordray is leaving on his own terms. This decision comes after months of speculation over Cordray’s future at the CFPB. Most recently, President Trump openly discussed firing Cordray with members of Congress while signing the resolution to repeal the CFPB’s controversial arbitration rule. Cordray has long been rumored to be exploring a bid for Ohio 86 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

governor after the bureau published its much-anticipated final payday lending rule, however he has yet to announce anything regarding his future. His letter to CFPB staff did not mention any future plans. Cordray’s resignation muddies the water for Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O’Neill, who has said he’s leaning toward entering the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary, according to an article in Cleveland.com by Jeremy Pelzer. Back in July, O’Neill said a mutual friend told him that Cordray is going to run for Ohio governor. And as a result, O’Neill said that he would stick to his promise not to run. Both O’Neill and Cordray have been considered top candidates for the position. However, after about three months passed with no move from Cordray, O’Neill put his name back in the hat to run for Ohio governor. From the article: “I want to do it,” the 70-year-old Chagrin Falls resident told cleveland.com in a telephone interview. The only thing stopping him from launching a campaign right now, he said, is the thought of the “immense personal sacrifice” he would make by having to step down from the court early to run. O’Neill, who must retire from the court next year because of age limits, has said he wouldn’t run for governor if Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, enters the race. But he said that he has “grown impatient waiting for Richard.” Meanwhile, O’Neill’s previous claim that Cordray is running for governor back in July managed to stir up some trouble. Shortly after O’Neill’s claims, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, called for an investigation of Cordray for allegedly violating the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees and cabinet members from using their official position to influence an election. Hensarling questioned the call between Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O’Neill and a “mutual friend” who said that Cordray plans to run in Ohio and asked the state’s top elected Democrat to not stand in Cordray’s way. Cordray might be waiting to see the outcome of the Hatch Act investigation before he announces his run. However, the Office of Special Counsel, which initiated the investigation, told Cordray in November that the investigation found “no evidence” that he violated the Hatch Act. “The U.S. Office of Special Counsel completed its investigation into allegations that you violated the Hatch Act by being a candidate in the 2018 Ohio gubernatorial election while employed as the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” Erica Hamrick, deputy chief of the OSC’s Hatch Act Unit, said in a letter to Cordray. “As explained below, OSC found no evidence that you have violated the Hatch Act.” The result of the Office of Special Counsel’s investigation was

Campaign Circuit

first reported by Law.com, which also provided a copy of the letter Hamrick sent to Cordray in mid-October. Hamrick’s letter stated that as the CFPB director, Cordray is subject to the provisions of the Hatch Act, including being prohibited from running for the nomination or as a candidate for election to a partisan political office. According to the letter, the Hatch Act prohibition against candidacy “extends not merely to the formal announcement of candidacy but also to the preliminaries leading to such announcement and to canvassing or soliciting support or doing or permitting to be done any act in furtherance of candidacy.” That basically means that a federal employee cannot take any action that can viewed as launching a political campaign in any formal manner. Some of the actions that fall into that category are: soliciting political contributions, conducting meetings about campaign activities, and holding a press conference to discuss one’s candidacy. Acceptable activities include “merely discussing with family or close friends the possibility of running; fact-finding to learn what would be required to run; or making inquiries to understand the current political landscape.” “OSC’s investigation, however, found no evidence that you have engaged in any of the types of preliminary activities directed toward candidacy that would violate the Hatch Act. Accordingly, we are closing our file without further action.” And with that, Cordray is off the Hatch Act hook and on to the next fight. HENSARLING RETIRING On Halloween, Hensarling announced to his supporters that he will not run for re-election in 2018. Dallas Morning News reporter Gromer Jeffers reported that Hensarling announced his retirement from Congress in an email to supporters. “Today I am announcing that I will not seek re-election to the U.S. Congress in 2018. Although service in Congress remains the greatest privilege of my life, I never intended to make it a lifetime commitment, and I have already stayed far longer than I had originally planned,” Hensarling said in the email. Hensarling added that considering his term as the chair of the House Financial Services Committee is coming to an end next year, “the time seems right for my departure.” Hensarling, in his position as chair of the committee, has displayed significant influence of the financial services industry in the last few years. Hensarling is the driving force behind the Financial CHOICE Act, H.R. 10, the Republican-crafted effort to replace the DoddFrank Wall Street Reform Act. Hensarling made the CFPB and Director Cordray his frequent targets.

“

This administration is a disaster on so many issues. This just is not working. He’s completely in over his head.” — Julián Castro

Earlier this year, Hensarling told Cordray to his face that he deserved to be fired. “Mr. Cordray, I know that you are here at our committee’s invitation for a statutory appearance, but I’m otherwise surprised to see you here in that, as you well know, there have been many press reports saying that you would have otherwise returned to Ohio to pursue a gubernatorial bid,” Hensarling said during a congressional hearing in April. “On the other hand, I am also surprised that you are here because, as you are well aware, the president under the PHH case can dismiss you at will. Under Dodd-Frank, you can be removed for cause,” Hensarling said. “Either way, I believe the president is clearly justified in dismissing you and I call upon the president – yet again – to do just that, and to do it immediately.” In February 2017, Hensarling stood in the Oval Office as President Trump signed an executive order to begin the rollback of Dodd-Frank. “I’m very pleased that President Trump signed this executive action, which closely mirrors provisions that are found in the Financial CHOICE Act to end Wall Street bailouts, end ‘too big to fail,’ and end top-down regulations that make it harder for our economy to grow and for hardworking Americans to achieve financial independence,” Hensarling said at the time. But now, Hensarling is on his way out of Congress. He did stress that he won’t stop working to further his agenda for the remainder of his term – including housing finance reform. “Although I will not be running for re-election, there are 14 months left in my congressional term to continue to fight for individual liberty, free enterprise, and limited constitutional government – the causes for which I remain passionate,” Hensarling wrote. “Much work remains at the House Financial Services Committee in the areas of housing finance reform, regulatory relief, cybersecurity and capital formation to name just a few,” Hensarling continued. “Furthermore, important work remains in the Congress as a whole – especially pro-growth tax reform. I look forward to continuing this work on behalf of the people of the 5th District of Texas and all Americans.” HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 87

Knowledge

Center

90 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Knowledge Center

W H I T E PA PE R: Serv iceLink | SP ONSOR E D CON T E N T

Auction services and default services A MORTGAGE INDUSTRY LOVE STORY FORECLOSURES IN THE U.S. have continued to decline through process. When this happens, information from various service Q2 2017, according to data reported in the July 2017 Mortgage providers doesn’t get passed along to the seller, making optimal Monitor, a respected mortgage statistics report produced by Black decision-making more difficult. This lack of visibility into communications, actions and upKnight Financial Services. This is good news, and it is hoped that this downward trend will continue — but as of July 2017, foreclo- dates from initial default and loss mitigation efforts through asset sures remain 44% above normal levels. The report also indicated management and disposition is more than inconvenient. It can that currently, nearly one million properties are either associated drive up costs for servicers – such as when redundant title orders with a loan that is 90 days past due but not yet in foreclosure, or are placed for the same asset as it moves from loss mitigation, through foreclosure, and into REO or post-sale conveyance. It those that are already in foreclosure pre-sale inventory. Defaulted properties certainly create significant pre- and post- can also impact other vitally important factors such as whether sale administrative and financial burdens for financial institu- a property is right-priced to appeal to prospective buyers, while tions. Of course, there are multiple channels mortgage servicers maximizing proceeds for mortgage holders. can deploy to get defaulted properties sold and off their books as quickly as possible, including in-house sales organizations, TIME TO EXPECT MORE external real estate firms, investment groups and auction com- When it comes to the relationship between servicers and auction panies. Of these, auction companies can typically cast the broad- disposition providers, servicers may be settling for less than deest net to attract qualified buyers, efficiently manage the sales sired simply because there hasn’t been a better option. But, fortuprocess, and compete with one another to deliver best price and nately that’s no longer the case. ServiceLink Auction is now availspeed-to-sale for sellers. able, and changing expectations across the mortgage industry.

LACKING THAT SPECIAL SOMETHING

SERVICELINK AUCTION: THE PERFECT PARTNER

Like the technology transformation that has occurred (and continues to occur) across the mortgage industry, the need for greater efficiency and improved transparency during the management and disposition of defaulted mortgage assets is significant. For example, a variety of in-house professionals and external business partners typically work on a defaulted mortgage file. One team may work on the file during the foreclosure (or deedin-lieu) process; those who are charged with managing and preserving the REO asset may add notes and other information to the file; and the sales channel team that will market the property may include a list of interested prospects and results. It’s no wonder that there can be gaps in communication anywhere across the

ServiceLink Auction is the end-to-end solution that can uniquely address the efficiency and transparency issues that plague mortgage servicers as they manage and ultimately liquidate defaulted mortgage properties. Backed by the financial power of Fidelity National Financial (FNF), and enriched by FNF’s recent acquisition of the highly respected Hudson and Marshall auction firm, ServiceLink Auction has the unmatched capabilities to help the industry take a giant leap forward.

To read the entire white paper, visit the Knowledge Center at knowledge.housingwire.com. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 91

Knowledge

Center

92 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Knowledge Center

W H I T E PA PE R: Cor eLogic | SP ONSOR E D CON T E N T

Challenges of loan origination ESTIMATING ACCURATE PROPERTY TAX AMOUNTS BACKGROUND In the days prior to the democratization and standardization of credit scores and credit reports, the process of estimating a borrower’s credit worthiness was a non-standardized, cumbersome and time-consuming process. The process relied on specialized knowledge and personal interpretation of financial information. As the mortgage process evolved, breakthrough productivity and quality improvements were achieved through the standardization of the underwriting processes and the full availability of the credit analysis toolset.

CHALLENGES Much like the evolution of credit scoring, another critical component of the new loan origination process has emerged — property tax amount estimation quality. The estimating process is conducted during the initial stages of origination in order to complete the required Loan Estimate provided to the borrower. With the increased scrutiny around the preparation of the Loan Estimate, lenders must increase the quality and consistency of the processes used to calculate the projected tax amounts listed in the documentation provided to the borrower. Estimates also need to be validated during the underwriting stage to qualify the borrower’s ability to financially support all of the mortgage costs, and ultimately property taxes need to be included in the settlement documents. Lenders are gathering this data from several disparate places, including directly from the community website, from Realtors, or even the borrower. Asking a borrower or a real estate agent for tax information is analogous to requesting a homeowner to estimate

his own credit score! Only a consistent procurement process can ensure access to the best information available. A standardized version of a validated property tax estimating processes in line with the RESPA-TILA requirements follows these main steps: 1. Validate address 2. Determine county and tax agencies (there can be more than one!) 3. Identify the source of information for each county/tax agency 4. Determine Tax Identifications for each tax agency. This step cannot be fully performed for new construction loans or apartment units where the final allocation to each unit has not yet been completed by the tax agency. New construction tax estimates require additional steps to calculate the tax amounts. 5. Find and document tax amounts and tax bills 6. Analyze tax amounts to determine expected future tax amounts This description of the process illustrates the complexity and the knowledge/experience required to make accurate estimates of future tax amounts. The current RESPA-TILA regulation calls for the lenders to use reliable sources and methods to determine accurate tax amounts: “Creditors are responsible for ensuring that the figures stated in the Loan Estimate are made in good faith and consistent with the best information reasonably available to the creditor at the time they are disclosed.”

To read the entire white paper, visit the Knowledge Center at knowledge.housingwire.com. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 93

Knowledge

Center

94 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

Knowledge Center

W H I T E PA PE R: Ellie M a e | SP ONSOR E D CON T E N T

CIO buyer’s guide SIX THINGS TO LOOK FOR IN LOAN ORIGINATION SYSTEMS

SIX THINGS TO LOOK FOR IN LOAN ORIGINATION SYSTEMS. Mortgage lenders of all sizes are turning to Loan Origination Systems (LOS) to automate every phase of the loan origination lifecycle, from marketing and point-of-sale to underwriting, closing, funding and beyond. While the primary users of these systems are loan officers, IT executives typically play an important role in vetting and selecting LOS vendors – as well they should, since IT is intimately involved in the roll-out and support of these systems. Ellie Mae retains a CIO Advisory Board of top IT executives from some of our most technically forward-looking clients. The board gets early looks at product plans, weighs in on potential features and provides sage wisdom on technical issues and solutions. We assembled a panel of CIOs from the Advisory Board to get their perspective on the most important requirements for selecting an LOS vendor. We asked them three questions: 1. What advice would you give your best CIO friend before they start an LOS search? 2. What are your top technical areas of concern surrounding your business and the mortgage industry? 3. If you started an LOS search tomorrow, what questions would be at the top of your list? A prioritized list of requirements for Loan Origination Systems emerged from this strategic input. We combined the results to create this CIO Buyers Guide. It is intended to help CIOs and other IT professionals, as well as their counterparts on the business side, to evaluate LOS vendors and products in line with industry best practices. Data management and business intelligence loan origination has one of the most complex data structures to manage, with huge volumes of information on consumers, properties and regulations. Given the large volumes of data consumed and managed by loan

systems, the CIOs agreed that data management and reporting top the list of priorities. Their advice was to first understand the requirements of the business, then ask prospective vendors to explain how they would address them. Such requirements as data standardization, storage technology, access control, and document management structures should all be considered, as well as business intelligence capabilities, including data warehouse schema and metadata.

DATA TYPES The LOS must manage a broad range of data types, including borrower, lender, and loan data. • Borrower data – employment history, financial information, credit reports, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, borrower assets and liabilities, and more. Much of this data is highly confidential and requires strict security and access controls • Lender data – passwords, employee credentials, names, numbers, emails, and more • Loan data – properties, loan amounts, rates, notifications, audit logs, and more

DATA STORAGE Make sure your LOS vendor supports your storage strategy, whether on-premise, online private, online public or hybrid. If on-premise, the lender must ensure high-availability and business continuity. If online, make sure the vendor provides industry-standard performance and security. Data retention must also be considered. Be prepared to provide sufficient capacity over time. By law some data must be retained up to seven years after the term of the loan.

To read the entire white paper, visit the Knowledge Center at knowledge.housingwire.com. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 95

Knowledge

Center

96 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

W H I T E PA P E R : S t e wa r t T i t l e Gua r a n t y | S P ON S OR E D C ON T E N T

Knowledge Center

Online closings A GUIDE FOR MORTGAGE LENDERS AND TITLE AGENTS INTRODUCTION Let’s face it – in the case of refinances or home equity loans, borrowers want their money ASAP. The same goes for new home purchases. Borrowers can’t wait to move into their dream home. Going to an office to sign documents, while today and historically a necessary step, is seen as an inconvenience for something that borrowers just want to happen NOW. These issues are reduced through a new way of closing — online (aka remote) notarization! The borrower does not have to travel to an office or invite a stranger into his or her home to sign documents in order to close their transaction. Of course, online notaries may have their own issues (computer or webcam not working), yet these issues can be greatly reduced with communication, risk-management strategies, and cooperation between the parties involved. Today, online notarization is only allowed and insurable in a limited number of states where the law recognizes the lien of the security instrument as valid and enforceable with priority. However, we see this trend growing quickly due to consumer demand for convenience and lender interest in efficiency. Lenders and title companies should proceed carefully in states that allow online or remote eNotarization while also considering how tools and technology can enhance the closing experience for clients and customers to make business better. This paper will discuss the issues surrounding online notarization and provide lenders and title companies with some things to consider before moving toward a full online eClosing in the real estate transaction. Working together, title companies and lenders can collaborate so online notarization becomes an option everywhere to enhance the closing experience for clients and customers.

eClosing. For example, there are actually differences between the three types of notaries — mobile notaries, eNotaries, online or remote notaries. A mobile notary will travel to the borrower’s residence or the lender’s offices to notarize closing documents in the same room (aka physical presence) of those parties who are required to sign the loan, title and closing documents. These mobile notaries may or may not use eNotarization as part of the signing process (thus making them an eNotary). eNotarization is a way for notaries to acknowledge electronic documents. It is essentially the same process as the traditional notary signing a piece of paper, except an eNotary uses a digital signature and digital notary seal to notarize digital documents and validate with a digital certificate. Once these are affixed to the electronic document, the document is rendered tamper evident. This means unauthorized attempts to alter the document will be evident to relying parties. In nearly all states, the eNotary and signers must still be in the same physical location in order to legally complete the eNotarization. Online or remote notarization takes eNotarization a step further by using technology to expand the definition of “in the presence of” allowing notaries to notarize documents by real-time, twoway video and audio communications. Online Notary is a form of eNotarization where the signer’s personal appearance requirement is met via the internet or video conference. This means the signer could be located anywhere in the world and appear before the online eNotary via live, two-way webcam or video conference. The online eNotary is required to retain a recorded copy of the meeting in the limited number of states which allow this form of eNotarization.

TERMINOLOGY

To read the entire white paper,

There is confusion over the meaning of various terms related to

visit the Knowledge Center at knowledge.housingwire.com. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 97

Kudos LAUNCHES • The URBAN INSTITUTE’S HOUSING FINANCE POLICY CENTER has released a new version of its interactive housing boom and bust map. The newest map includes 2016 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data and adds a new feature – the ability to distinguish between

purchase and refinance mortgages. Users can now scan through 16 years of data on 130 million mortgages for any region of the country and see how different racial groups have fared during these years. Mortgage and real estate technology company, RE-

MILESTONES

ALKEY, recently launched its universal mortgage and real estate automation software. RealKey allows all participants in the process to connect in real time and have one single application that can be accepted by any mortgage lender. Mortgage lender NEW

GIVING BACK • GUILD MORTGAGE’S Guild Giving Foundation hosted its inaugural Charity Golf and Dinner Social recently, raising more than $174,000 for three San Diegoarea charities. More than 200 people, including business and community partners, sponsors and Guild employees, partici-

OFFICIAL WHITE HOUSE PHOTOGRAPH BY JOYCE BOGHOSIAN

• PAM PATENAUDE was sworn in as the new deputy secretary of the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT on Sept. 26. Patenaude, who previously served as the president of the J. RONALD TERWILLIGER FOUNDATION FOR HOUSING AMERICA’S FAMILIES, will direct 16 programs and support offices within HUD to help state and local governments design and execute their recovery plans to rebuild damaged housing, businesses and critical infrastructure. “As HUD’s second-ranking of-

AMERICAN FUNDING announced its latest expansion in Northern California with the grand opening of its new Novato location. The company has also recently opened new branches in Sonoma Valley, California, Kennesaw, Georgia, and Las Cruces, New Mexico.

ficial, Deputy Secretary Patenaude will lead the Department’s Disaster Management Group and will play a primary leadership and operational role in coordinating the long-term recovery efforts following Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria,” HUD said in their official announcement. Patenaude also previously served as the director of housing policy at the BIPARTISAN POLICY CENTER and served as the HUD assistant secretary for community, planning and development under President George W. Bush.

88 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

pated in the tournament, which was held Oct. 4 at the Rancho Bernardo Inn. The proceeds from the golf tournament, auction and dinner social will benefit MONARCH SCHOOL, URBAN CORPS OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY and the SAN DIEGO RESCUE MISSION.

SPONSORED CONTENT Cheryl Travis Johnson is co-chair of the Council for Inclusion and Financial Services and chief operating officer for VRM.

Executive Conversation: Cheryl Travis Johnson on solving the industry’s toughest challenges Insights gained from the 2017 Financial Services Expo HousingWire: The Financial Services Expo this summer was sponsored by The Council for Inclusion and Financial Services and The Mortgage Collective to provide a new approach to solving the finance industry’s toughest challenges. What are some of those challenges? Cheryl Travis Johnson : Our industry is aging and we need the next generations to see the value in working within the financial services industry. Moreover, as the Baby Boomers continue transferring wealth to Generation X and the Millennials, these young men and women will need to be financially savvy to ensure the wealth continues for the next generation. So generational inclusion has become an important part of any business inclusion and sustainability plan. CIFS is addressing the educational programs that help consumers understand and compare financial products and services. CIFS offers an educational platform to companies for consumer outreach purposes, which we hope will improve the declining new home purchases in some emerging markets, and yield more responsible use of investment, credit and insurance products nationwide. Understanding how to grow your money is something everyone should know. We have also developed curriculum for colleges to used that will certify students to work in various positions 98 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

within the industry. We want to combine this certification with part-time jobs and internships for two and fouryear college students. HW: The event focused on a variety of different stakeholders, including homebuyers, lenders, job seekers and industry leaders. Why such a broad approach? CTJ : Financial services affect all stakeholders, whether they are planning for their financial future, seeking employment opportunities or professionals within the industry addressing specific challenges like disruptive technology. Additionally, the number of women, minorities and Millennials in middle management continues to decline, which is limiting the number of these resources available for C-Suite and board seat opportunities. Further, there are also new business start-up opportunities that entrepreneurs might want to consider. CIFS wants to be intentional about educating on all financial services opportunities. HW: How did the different stakeholders benefit from being brought together at this conference? CTJ : The primary mission of CIFS is to help the financial services industry recognize the economic benefits of inclusion in employment and supplier

opportunities, and to enhance the public education about financial products and services for growing personal wealth. Opening up the event to the public helped to accomplish this goal. CIFS is a platform to help the financial services move towards a norm of inclusion. The message was clear that there is an economic and competitive advantage with an inclusive workforce. Professionals received some effective tips on how to leverage inclusion to improve their business. The sessions addressed some of the nuances that can make it difficult for small businesses to secure financial services contracts like cyber fraud, social media and positioning. The expo helped to close some of this knowledge gap, by letting registrants interact with key industry leaders on various topics. HW: How did the conference address engaging the next generation — whether as homebuyers or people who want to join the industry? CTJ : Most conferences within our industry focus on professionals and businesses within the industry. Companies are limited to B2B opportunities. CIFS gave its sponsors access to consumers both from a B2B and B2C perspective. So, organizations can grow their business from either track. Therefore, consumers learn about improving their financial future and their decision to do so is a business opportunity for the financial services companies they work with.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Kirk Randlett is senior leader of Tax Service Operations at CoreLogic.

Executive Conversation: Kirk Randlett on the importance of accurate property tax data CoreLogic provides a comprehensive view for consumers at closing HousingWire: What are some of the new expectations consumers have in the mortgage loan closing process? Kirk Randlett: A few years ago, in the aftermath of the mortgage crisis, consumers were conditioned to believe that obtaining a mortgage was a difficult process. But lately they’re being bombarded with ads and messages saying that it’s very easy, very fast and very simple. And then comes the closing, with all the confusing calculations and piles of paper, and, frequently, last minute unpleasant surprises when it comes to closing costs. Some regulatory changes have helped to prevent some of these surprises. But lenders and LOs need to do a better job explaining the process and preparing the borrower for all of the costs they will see. This is particularly true for state, county and other jurisdictional taxes. HW: How are lenders meeting this demand for improved accuracy when it comes to property tax data? KR: Estimating property tax amounts throughout the United States is a challenging task due to the complexity and differences in taxing authorities across the country. That challenge is even more complicated in areas like California, where legislation caps tax increases for existing residents, and then changes the tax rates for the new buyer after the sale. Lenders today are accessing property tax data in

“Inaccuracy in reporting property tax data can lead to delays, such as reissuance of documents, or in the actual closing process...” disparate ways. One lender may have the loan officer calculate the amounts, or they use the current owner’s tax base information. Another lender may make multiple calls to the various state and county jurisdictions. These manual, one-off approaches contribute to longer turn times and inconsistent methods of determining the correct amounts. Also, the calculations may fail to take into consideration the borrower’s status as military, disabled, or some other exemption. Inaccuracy in reporting property tax data can lead to delays, such as reissuance of documents, or in the actual closing process where it can impact the closing process resulting in an unhappy consumer. HW: How does CoreLogic deliver superior data accuracy without sacrificing speed and efficiency? KR: CoreLogic has built one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date tax information databases that covers most residential parcels in the U.S. By combining this database with our proprietary estimation engine and a

new technology platform, CoreLogic can deliver a comprehensive view of real property taxes for the specific address, even for new construction loans. Users can instantly access this information at loan application and provide a response with the taxing authorities’ information, the new estimated tax amounts, as well as the current actual tax. HW: What specific benefits do lenders gain from using CoreLogic’s Property Tax Estimator (PTE)? KR: Lenders benefit in several ways. A consistent, valid property tax value is used from pre-qualification through servicing. Their staff obtains property tax information in a fraction of the time via web portal or direct loan origination system integration. PTE provides multiple reliable data points, including actual and estimated tax values, to help lenders demonstrate reasonable efforts to procure the best available data. PTE offers a value advantage through improved time savings, productivity and data quality. And, PTE makes a positive impact to the consumer experience. HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 99

INDEX COMPANIES

Factom.................................................................................................18

move...........................................14, 30-31, 41, 47, 56, 65, 97-98

Fannie Mae................................................................................. 18, 52

Movement Bank........................................................................... 48

Federal Reserve Board.................................................16, 32, 70

Movement Mortgage...................................................16, 48, 62

Federal Reserve Board of Governors ��32

Mr. Cooper......................................................................................... 46

U.S. Bank............................................................................................62

Accenture...........................................................................................22 Alight.....................................................................................................14 Alight Mortgage Solutions........................................................14 Altisource...................................................................................20, 64

MortgageHippo..............................................................................54

The Mortgage Collective.......................................................... 98

Mountain West Financial.......................................................... 47

Title Source........................................................................................51

FHFA..................................................................................................... 47 Fidelity National Financial........................................................91

United Guaranty............................................................................59

United Wholesale Mortgage.................................. 66, 75, 82

Floify....................................................................................................60

National Association of Mortgage Brokers ��16

Urban Corps of San Diego County...................................... 88

Formation 8......................................................................................45

National MI........................................................................................55

Urban Institute........................................................................29, 88

Assurant..............................................................................................16

FormFree............................................................................................52

Nationstar........................................................................................ 46

Assurant Mortgage Solutions.................................................16

Forum of Christian Business Leaders ��50

Nationwide Title Clearing..........................................64, 75, 78

Auction.com.....................................................................................53

Freddie Mac..............................................................................44, 59

Neal Communities Funding.....................................................53

Free Wheelchair Mission...........................................................50

New American Funding..............................16, 26, 44-45, 88

Velocify.................................................................................................77

American Enterprise Institute................................................29 American Land Title Association..........................................51 Andreessen Horowitz.................................................................52 Arch Capital Group.......................................................................59

First State Bank............................................................................. 48

UPF Services.....................................................................................50

VidVerify..............................................................................................16

Ballard Spahr................................................................................... 72

Barclays...............................................................................................16

Guild Giving Foundation...................................................60, 88

Open Listings...................................................................................54

Bienville Capital.............................................................................45

Guild Mortgage................................................18, 55, 60, 80, 88

Optimal Blue....................................................................................24

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency �� 57

Bipartisan Policy Center........................................................... 88 Black Knight Financial Services.............................................91 BlackStone Group.........................................................................52 Blend....................................................................................................62 Boba Tea & Treats.........................................................................18

C California Homebuilding Foundation ��50 Carnegie Mellon..............................................................................51 Chase Home Lending..................................................................65

Class Appraisal...............................................................................49 ClosingCorp.......................................................................................52 Cloudvirga.........................................................................................52

Commerce Title..............................................................................50 Consolidated Analytics...............................................................16

Paramount Residential Mortgage Group ��54 PeerStreet.........................................................................................52

HomeBridge Financial Services.............................................16

Planet Home Lending.................................................................16

HomeRun............................................................................................51

PrimeLending.............................................................16, 63, 75, 79

Homie...................................................................................................54

Progressive........................................................................................54

Andreano, Richard........................................................................ 72

Hudson and Marshall...................................................................91

Promontory MortgagePath Group.................................... 66

Arvielo, Patty...........................................................................43-44

Huntington Bank........................................................................... 57

CoreLogic...................................................................38, 59, 93, 99 Council for Inclusion and Financial Services ��98

Arvielo, Rick........................................................................26, 43, 45

Qualia...................................................................................................45

Informative Research..........................................................16, 46

Quandis................................................................................................61

Baker, Nate................................................................................ 43, 45

Inspired Title Services.................................................................53

Quicken Loans..................................................................................16

Bhat, Rajesh....................................................................................80 Bray, Jay......................................................................................43, 46

JPMorgan Chase................................................................... 65, 80

Ramen Hakata.................................................................................18 RealKey.............................................................................................. 88 Realtor.com............................................................................ 56, 102

Roostify.........................................................16, 24, 54, 65, 75, 80

Latino Focus initiative................................................................ 44 LendingHome..................................................................................51

Bristol, Scott......................................................................................16 Buckner, Sean..........................................................................43, 46

C Cady, John...................................................................................43, 47 Cantwell, Maria...............................................................................29 Cassada, Terrell.......................................................................43, 47

loanDepot.........................................................................................50

LoanLogics........................................................................................47,

Sage Credit........................................................................................52

Cisneros, Henry...............................................................................85

San Diego Rescue Mission....................................................... 88

Clinton, Bill........................................................................................85

SD Capital Funding........................................................................16

Clinton, Hillary.................................................................................85

Department of Housing and Urban Development 76, 85, 88

PEOPLE

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.....38, 44, 62, 70, 86

Wells Fargo........................................................................16, 48, 62

HomeAid America........................................................................50

Cogent Road....................................................................................50 Comergence.....................................................................................24

Weiner Brodsky Kider.................................................................. 72

Habitat for Humanity................................................................ 64

Chronos Solutions.........................................................................50 Citywide Home Loans................................................................65

Cassidy, Bill........................................................................................29

DEVAL...........................................................................................75-76

Seneca Mortgage......................................................................... 48

Clouse, James...................................................................................16

Docutech............................................................................................52

Mason-McDuffie Mortgage.....................................................49

ServiceLink.........................................................................................91

Codel, Franklin........................................................................43, 48

Matic Insurance Services...........................................................54

Stearns Lending......................................................... 16, 61, 75, 81

Connelly, Marc..................................................................................16

Mattamy Home Funding..........................................................53

Stewart Title............................................................................58, 97

Cordray, Richard............................................................................ 86

Stonegate Mortgage....................................................................14

Corr, Jonathan..................................................................................77

East2West Valuation Services...............................................16

McDonnell and Associates.......................................................16

Maxwell.......................................................................................16, 54

Crawford, Casey.....................................................................43, 48 Crowley, Joe......................................................................................29

Easy Mortgage Apps...................................................................24

MCS Solutions.................................................................................56

Ellie Mae...................................................54, 63, 70-71, 75, 77, 95

Mercury Network.................................................................... 16, 52

Equator Business Solutions.................................................... 64

Monarch School............................................................................ 88

Tavant Technologies...................................................................58

Equifax..................................................................................38, 41, 52

Mortgage Bankers Association.......16, 44-45, 51-52, 66,

Taylor Morrison Home Funding.............................................53

Ernst Information Services......................................................62

73, 77

The Financial Services Expo.................................................. 98

Davila, Joe..........................................................................................20

Experian.......................................................................................16, 38

Mortgage Funding Direct Ventures ��53

The Money Source........................................................................ 57

Donovan, Shaun............................................................................85

100 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

AD INDEX

WHEN FACEBOOK MEETS FICO

Alternative credit scoring p36

McGarry, Mary Ann................................................................18, 43, 55

Elezaj, Alex......................................................................................43, 49

Mosley, Chad..................................................................................43, 56

Elkins, Tim................................................................................................79

F Frazier, Jason..................................................................................43, 49

G Ghamsari, Nima................................................................................... 48 Golden, Daniel........................................................................................19 Goorman, Steve...................................................................................65

H Hanson, Dan...................................................................................43, 50 Happ, Scott.............................................................................................24

Merkle, Claudia............................................................................. 43, 55

O Obama, Barack.....................................................................................85

P Papastavrou, Stavros................................................................43, 57 Patenaude, Pam................................................................................. 88 Pelzer, Jeremy....................................................................................... 86 Plum, Jay...........................................................................................43, 57 Poliquin, Bruce......................................................................................29

Altisource ........................................................................................................................................23 Arch MI ...............................................................................................................................................17 B BAI .................................................................................................................................................... 89 Black Knight Financial Services................................................................................................2 E Ellie Mae ..................................................................................................................................... 5, 15 Ernst Information Services.......................................................................................................27

Haring, John......................................................................................70-71

Rable, Brad......................................................................................43, 58

Hatch, Orrin.............................................................................................29

Randlett, Kirk........................................................................................ 99

Hecht, James..........................................................................................81

Rashid, Mohammad..................................................................43, 58

F Fiserv................................................................................................................................................... 4 Freddie Mac.......................................................................................................................................3

Heck, Denny............................................................................................29

Rippert, Andrew...........................................................................43, 59

Hensarling, Jeb.................................................................................... 86

Roemer, Mike..........................................................................................16

Hikel, Mark.......................................................................................43, 50

Rosenthal, Ryan....................................................................................16

Gateway Mortgage Group........................................................................................................19

Hillman, John.........................................................................................78 Hopkins, Laura.......................................................................................16 Hughes, Brian...................................................................................43, 51 Humphrey, Matt.............................................................................43, 51

Sando, Barry...................................................................................43, 59 Schmidt, Terry...............................................................................43, 60

I Isaacson, Walter...................................................................................19 Ishbia, Mat...............................................................................................82

Schneider, David...................................................................................81

Global DMS....................................................................................................................................... 6 M

Sherman, Renae...................................................................................16 Sims, Dave.......................................................................................43, 60

LoanLogics......................................................................................................................................25

Smith, Steve.................................................................................... 43, 61 Stein, Scott...............................................................................................16

Stephan, Tracy.......................................................................................18

J Jobs, Steve................................................................................................19

Stevens, John..........................................................................................16

M&M Mortgage Services............................................................................................................. 8

Stoddard, Scott............................................................................. 43, 61 Sumner, Crystal............................................................................43, 62

Jourdain-Earl, Maurice...............................................................72-73

National Field Representatives............................................................................................ 89

Tasker, Herb............................................................................................49

New American Funding..........................................................................................................104

Teal, Gregory..................................................................................43, 62

Johnson, Brew................................................................................43, 52 Johnson, Cheryl Travis..................................................................... 98

Terwilliger, Ron.....................................................................................28

Kaine, Tim................................................................................................85

Thompson, Steve........................................................................ 43, 63

Kamrooz, Kyle................................................................................43, 52

Trump, Donald............................................................................... 13, 85

Kelley, Tawn.....................................................................................43, 53

Tyrrell, Joe........................................................................................ 43, 63

NEXT Mortgage Events..............................................................................................................12 P PrimeLending.................................................................................................................................21

Key, Debbie..............................................................................................16 Kider, Mitchel......................................................................................... 72

Van Hollen, Chris..................................................................................29

Vella, John...............................................................................20, 43, 64

Stewart Title..................................................................................................................................34

Lazio, Rick........................................................................................28-29

Lindblom, Suzy......................................................................................16

Walby, Jimmy................................................................................43, 64

Taylor Morrison Home Funding.............................................................................................35

Lambros, Colleen.........................................................................43, 53 Laurence, Tiana.....................................................................................18

Weinbach, Mike............................................................................43, 65

Whitehead, Teresa.....................................................................43, 65

Title Source...................................................................................................................................103

Williams, Melissa..................................................................................16

Madick, Ben.....................................................................................43, 54

Wilner, Melinda.............................................................................43, 66

Malis, Gary.......................................................................................43, 54

Witherell, Bruce............................................................................43, 66

McFadden, Mike....................................................................................14

Wooden, John.......................................................................................52

U USFN..................................................................................................................................................10 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018 101

PARTING SHOT ❱ CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION According to newly released Realtor.com data, home prices have ballooned to the boom levels of a decade ago. The median home sales price in 2016 was $236,000, 2% higher than in 2006. Thirty-one of the 50 largest U.S. metros are back to prerecession price levels. Austin, Texas, has seen the largest price growth in the last decade with a 63% increase, followed by Denver at 54% and Dallas at 52%.

102 HOUSINGWIRE ❱ DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018