Mortgage Think Tank

Here’s one of the biggest problems with new technology in the mortgage lending space: some people think that making inefficient processes happen faster makes them efficient. That’s not always the case, especially when these processes impact other parts of the business by messing up what could be a smoother workflow.

No matter how quickly you fly to your layover destination, you’ll never do better than a direct flight.

The mortgage origination process has never been accused of being a streamlined operation. Technology hasn’t done all that much to help it yet, though we’re tracking some cmpanies that are working hard to do so. But before I get you thinking that we’re the only bad boys in the neighborhood, consider the boys from BumpTop.

Surf to their site and you’ll be served up a video demonstrating their new technology, which promises to take the computer desktop to the next level. Why have a collection of orderly icons and buttons when you can have a desktop that really looks like the top of your desk?

Why? Becasue the top of my desk looks like a volume of the World Book exploded over it like a neutron bomb (for you youngsters who may not know, World Book was one of the companies that was big when Wikipedia was printed out and only knowledgeable people worked on the articles).

With BumpTop each file is represented by a little electornic booklet that can be tossed around with the mouse and stacked up, just like the paper documents on our real desks.

To me, this is a perfect example of technology developed to automate an inefficient process. It’s very clever, but should never find its way into the working world. I can just hear it now: “So sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Homeowner, I lost your application under a stack of icons on my desktop.” Won’t float.

How much of the technology you’re using today is just allowing you to do dumb things faster? Before you get caught up in all the compliance-related arguments that generally keep originators locked in the past, check out some of the companies that are finding innovative ways to stay in compliance while they make the origination process better.

Rick Grant for Mortgage Think Tank

If you’re out in the field originating mortgage loans, you have your work cut out for you in this market. Not that things are that tough out there yet, but you’re not in the happy part of the cycle. If you know what’s coming, you’re already out there forming stronger alliances with good sources of business, combing back through your past client database and generally preparing to leave your order-taking days behind. That’s all part of the work you do.

For my part, I ask questions. I look at the work you do and ask how and when and why. Sometimes good stories result. Recently, I took a look at Source Media’s Top 50 lists and asked whether brokers agreed with the results. I wondered how the editors came up with the companies that made their two lists.

According to Mortgage Technology Editor Scott Kersnar and Managing Editor Anthony Garritano, a company must satisfy four requirements to make their lists: 1) customer satisfaction; 2) functionality; 3) market share and 4) have a viable revenue model. All good criteria, to be sure. While I have heard from a number of industry vendors who were dissapointed that they did not make the list, I have yet to hear from a single originator who disagreed with the results.

So what do you think it takes for you to make it to the top of the borrowers’ list of mortgage originators? Can you isolate four criteria that qualify you for such an honor? If you can’t, chances are neither can the borrowers in your neighborhood.

Give it some thought because only those brokers that make it to the top of the list will be successful as we move further into the mortgage lending cycle.

Rick Grant for Mortgage Think Tank