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ACES Quality Management Q1 2020 Mortgage QC Trends Report: EPDs Rising, Critical Defect Rate Hits Three-Year Low

DENVER, Colo. -- ACES Quality Management (ACES), formerly known as ARMCO and the leading provider of enterprise quality management and control software for the financial services industry, announced the release of the quarterly ACES Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report, which provides nationwide loan quality findings based on data derived from ACES Quality Management and Control Software(TM), covers the first quarter (Q1) of 2020.

Noteworthy findings include:
* Overall critical defect rate of 1.56% matched the lowest rate in three years;
* Defects attributed to the credit and income categories rebounded after climbing higher in Q4 2019;
* Increases in the share of refinances (5%) and conventional loans (2%) contributed to the improvement in the overall defect rate; and
* Early Payment Defaults are on the rise.

"The combination of falling interest rates, employment numbers not yet impacted by COVID-19, and steady property appreciation all contributed to increases in the share of both refinances and conventional loans, which in turn drove the continued decrease in the overall critical defect rate observed in Q1 2020," said ACES Executive Vice President Nick Volpe. "However, the last few weeks of the quarter encompassed the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and given the economic impact of the pandemic on consumers, the number of early payment defaults increased, as one would expect."

"ACES is monitoring this area closely, and the early Q2 data shows the number of EPDs reviewed by lenders through ACES is 75% higher than the average monthly rate of EPD reviews for 2019. Because an EPD review is triggered only when borrowers fall three or more payments behind, this indicates the industry is still in the early stages of the problem, and there is a high likelihood that the number of EPDs will continue to increase," Volpe added.

The Q1 2020 ACES Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is drawn from nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Quality Management and Control benchmarking system. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"Amid the chaos and uncertainty driven by COVID-19, data provides a clear path forward for lenders. While the industry's focus has been on managing the near-historic volumes, Q1 loan defect data also indicates that lenders must also turn their attention to the growing problem of EPDs, as this represents a significant operation and financial risk to their organizations," said ACES CEO Trevor Gauthier. "The power of ACES benchmarking functionality is that it allows lenders to utilize their current QC data to see what may lie ahead and respond accordingly to maintain loan quality and manage risk. This kind of trend forecasting can be a powerful tool in lenders' arsenals especially with so much uncertainty remaining at a macroeconomic level."

Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.acesquality.com/resources/reports.

About ACES Quality Management

ACES Quality Management, formerly known as ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), is the leading provider of enterprise quality management and control software for the financial services industry. The nation's most prominent lenders, servicers and financial institutions rely on ACES Audit Quality Management & Control Software(TM) to improve audit throughput and quality while controlling costs, including:
* 3 of the top 5 and more than 50% of the top 50 independent mortgage lenders;
* 2 of the top 5 loan servicers; and
* 2 of the top 5 depository institutions.

Unlike other quality control platforms, only ACES delivers Flexible Audit Technology, which gives independent mortgage lenders and financial institutions the ability to easily manage and customize ACES to meet their business needs without having to rely on IT or other outside resources. Using a customer-centric approach, ACES clients get responsive support and access to our experts to maximize their investment. For more information, visit https://www.acesquality.com/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

Related link: https://www.acesquality.com/

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2019 ARMCO QC Trends Report Indicates Overall Marked Improvement in Critical Defect Rate over 2018

DENVER, Colo. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise quality management and control software for the financial services industry, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report, which provides nationwide loan quality findings based on data derived from ACES Audit Technology(TM) covers both the fourth quarter (Q4) and the 2019 calendar year (CY).

"Reduced interest rate volatility and declining interest rates over the course of the year created an environment in which lenders rode a sustained wave of refinances, increased their overall loan production and improved their profitability - all of which contributed to the improvements in loan quality in 2019," said ARMCO Executive Vice President Nick Volpe. "With the rate environment expected to remain unchanged throughout 2020, the loan quality levels observed in 2019 seem sustainable. However, this forecast does not and cannot account for the anomalies triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, lenders will need to keep a sharp eye out for negative spikes in their loan data as 2020 continues."

The report's noteworthy findings include:

* On a quarter-over-quarter basis, critical defect rates improved in the first three quarters of 2019 before reversing the decline and climbing in Q4 2019.
* Q4 2019 ended with a defect rate of 1.73%, an increase of 11% from Q3 2019.
* The share of conventional loans increased from 56.40% in CY 2018 to 61.99%, representing a nearly 6% increase.
* Purchase share fell 7.5% in CY 2019 as compared to CY 2018.
* Regulatory compliance issues were down 51% year-over-year, to a multi-year low of 5.17% of all critical defects.
* Loan Package/Documentation defects were volatile in CY 2019 but did post a 12% improvement compared with CY 2018.
* Income, Assets, and Credit (key qualification/underwriting criteria) related defects made up 53% of all critical defects in CY 2019, with Income and Credit increasing from the prior year, and Asset defects decreasing.
* Market stability contributed to an overall better 2019 for lending quality. However, these improvements will be severely tested as data comes in for the coming quarters as we start to see COVID's impact on mortgage lending.

The Q4/CY 2019 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"While 2019's critical defect rates represent a clear improvement over 2018 and suggest a continuation of that trend moving into 2020, the increase in forbearance requests, high unemployment rates and the potential for early payment defaults to spike later in the year will certainly put this prediction to the test," said ARMCO CEO Trevor Gauthier. "Recognizing the potential need for lenders to ramp up their EPD audit volume, ARMCO launched ACESXPRESS for Early Payment Defaults to better prepare our clients for this possibility and ensure they had a turnkey platform to help them maintain audit requirements and keep a vigilant eye on this potential source of risk."

Volpe will analyze the findings from the Q4/CY 2019 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report and offer insights into what lenders can expect in future quarters during a webinar titled, "Insights into Mortgage QC Trends - Past Highlights and Predictions for 2020," as part of its on-going QC NOW Web Series. To access the webinar recording, visit https://www.armco.us/learn/webinars/qc-now.

ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports.

About ARMCO

ACES Risk Management (ARMCO) is the leading provider of enterprise quality management and control software for the financial services industry. More than half of the top 50 lenders and two of the top five U.S. commercial banks rely on ACES Audit Technology(TM) to improve audit throughput and quality while controlling costs. Unlike other quality control platforms, only ACES delivers Flexible Audit Technology, which gives independent mortgage lenders and financial institutions the ability to easily manage and customize ACES to meet their business needs without having to rely on IT or other outside resources. Using a customer-centric approach, ARMCO clients get responsive support and access to our experts to maximize their investment. For more information, visit www.armco.us or call 1-800-858-1598.

Related link: https://www.armco.us/

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Business, Free News Articles, Reports and Studies

Refinance Spike Drives Continued Decrease in Critical Defect Rate, According to Q3 2019 ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report

DENVER, Colo. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk mitigation solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report covers third quarter (Q3) 2019 and provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology™.

In Q3 2019, the overall critical defect rate reached 1.56%, representing a 9% decrease from the previous quarter and resulting in the lowest defect rate since Q4 2016. This also represents a 19% improvement from the most recent critical defect rate peak, which occurred in Q4 2018.

"The driving force behind Q3's strong critical defect rate is the increase in refinances, which accounted for 40% of the overall volume of loans reviewed this quarter. Given the current rate environment and overall mortgage market conditions, ARMCO's outlook for both the critical defect rate and the market as a whole remains incredibly strong," said ARMCO Executive Vice President, Nick Volpe.

The report's noteworthy findings include:
* The percentage of government loans reviewed in Q3 fell as the interest rate environment drove more conventional refinances, resulting in a 10% improvement on FHA loan defects compared to the previous quarter.
* Defect performance for purchase loans also improved, with defect categories related to core underwriting and qualification showing improvements over Q2 2019.
* Increase in Property/Appraisal defects driven by lasting effects of Hurricane Dorian, Hurricane Humberto and the multiple wildfires in Northern and Southern California.

"While refinance transactions generally result in fewer defects, volume spikes can often have the opposite impact on loan quality," said ARMCO President, Phil McCall. "Leveraging technology helps lenders better manage mortgage volume peaks and valleys while always keeping the focus on loan quality."

ARMCO's Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy. ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports.

About ARMCO

Over half of the top 25 mortgage lenders and 33% of the top 150 lenders and servicers combined choose ARMCO. ARMCO's product line includes loan quality enterprise software, services, data and analytics. Its flagship product, ACES Audit Technology™, has set the bar for user definability in its category. It is used at virtually every point in the mortgage lifecycle, as well as for a wide range of risk-prone business operations outside traditional mortgage origination and servicing.

ARMCO's consultative approach to customer relationships leverages 25 years of mortgage risk intel, assuring that its clients are using the most effective risk mitigation strategies, and are using the fastest, most reliable, most efficient means for preventing risk-related loss. ARMCO distributes the ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report, a free quarterly analysis of industry-wide mortgage loan quality. For more information, visit www.armco.us or call 1-800-858-1598.

Related link: https://www.armco.us/

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ARMCO QC Trends Report: Loan Quality Corrects with Market’s Upturn

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk management solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report covers first quarter (Q1) 2019 and provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology(TM).

"Q1 2019 revealed the loan quality correction we anticipated after Q4 2018, but while there are many positives related to the overall market's upturn, we saw an increase in defects related to key underwriting and eligibility functions," said Nick Volpe, chief strategy officer for ARMCO. "This continues a trend that persisted the entirety of 2019. Lenders shouldn't take this lightly."

The report's noteworthy findings include:
* The critical defect rate fell 6%, from 1.93% in Q4 2018 to 1.82% in Q1 2019
* Defects related to core underwriting and eligibility functions continued to increase, with more defects attributed to Income/Employment than any other category
* Critical defects attributed to missing, expired and/or incorrect documentation continued to be volatile (24% in Q3 2018, 16% in Q4 2018, and 24% in Q1 2019) and noted a substantial increase from the prior quarter
* Compliance-related critical defects fell to their lowest level since Q1 2016, likely the result of greater lender investment in compliance technologies
* Defects related to Property and Appraisal increased noticeably from the previous quarter but remained low overall
* Government-insured loans accounted for a slightly higher share of all loans in the benchmark with FHA, VA and USDA loans comprising 41% of all loans reviewed

The Q1 2019 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"Refi-dominant markets can have a positive impact on defect rates," said Phil McCall, president of ARMCO. "But when volume goes up, individual workloads increase, turn times extend and mistakes tend to increase. Lenders who leverage technology wisely scale much better and expose themselves to fewer losses as a result."

ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports.

About ARMCO
Over half of the top 20 mortgage lenders in the U.S. choose ARMCO as their provider of risk management software. ARMCO's product line includes loan quality enterprise software, services, data and analytics. Its flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(TM), has set the bar for user definability in its category. It is used at virtually every point in the mortgage lifecycle, as well as for a wide range of risk-prone business operations outside traditional mortgage origination and servicing.

ARMCO's consultative approach to customer relationships leverages 25 years of mortgage risk intel, assuring that its clients are using the most effective risk mitigation strategies, and are using the fastest, most reliable, most efficient means for preventing risk-related loss. ARMCO distributes the ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report, a free quarterly analysis of industry-wide mortgage loan quality. For more information, visit http://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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ARMCO QC Trends Report: Defects Related to Loan Package Documentation Doubled from 2017 to 2018

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk management solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report covers both the fourth quarter (Q4) and the calendar year (CY) 2018, and provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology(TM).

"Critical defects in 2018 reflect the market's rising interest rates and continued escalation of property values," said Nick Volpe, chief strategy officer for ARMCO. "Fewer highly qualified borrowers transact mortgages when rates increase, which fills the market with more marginal borrowers who tend to require more documentation. It makes sense that defects related to loan package documentation more than doubled from 2017 to 2018."

The report's noteworthy findings include:
* In Q4 2018, the critical defect rate increased just over 2%, reaching 1.93% from the previous quarters rate of 1.89%
* In CY 2018, the critical defect rate increased almost 8% over the previous year, jumping from 1.68% in CY 2017 to 1.81% in CY 2018
* Defects related to Income and Employment are on the rise:
o In Q4 2018, Income and Employment related defects increased 63% over Q3 2018
o In Q4 2018, Income and Employment related defects comprised a greater percentage of total defects for both CY 2018 and CY 2017
* Defects attributed to Loan Package Documentation more than doubled between CY 2017 and CY 2018.
* In Q4 2018, defects attributed to categories related to Underwriting / Eligibility continued to dominate overall quality issues, comprising over 65% of all critical defects.
* In Q4 2018, the top three categories that increased over Q3 2018 were all key qualification categories: Income and Employment, representing 20.39% of all critical defects in the benchmark. This category was followed by Credit at 18.45% and Loan Package Documentation at 15.53%.
* In CY 2018, FHA loans accounted for roughly 31% of the loans reviewed but represented approximately 41% of loans containing critical defects.

The Q4/CY 2018 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"As the market fluctuates, so do the distribution and frequency of defects, and if lenders aren't prepared, that can end up costing them a lot in price adjustments, fees, investor delays and even buybacks," said Phil McCall, president of ARMCO. "Analytical QC technologies enable lenders to catch the defects and proactively prevent them so they can protect their profits. In shifting markets, where defects are like moving targets, that's more important than ever."

ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports.

About ARMCO:
Over half of the top 20 mortgage lenders in the U.S. choose ARMCO as their provider of risk management software. ARMCO's product line includes loan quality enterprise software, services, data and analytics. Its flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(TM), has set the bar for user definability in its category. It is used at virtually every point in the mortgage lifecycle, as well as for a wide range of risk-prone business operations outside traditional mortgage origination and servicing. ARMCO's consultative approach to customer relationships leverages 25 years of mortgage risk intel, assuring that its clients are using the most effective risk mitigation strategies, and are using the fastest, most reliable, most efficient means for preventing risk-related loss. ARMCO distributes the ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report, a free quarterly analysis of industry-wide mortgage loan quality. For more information, visit http://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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ARMCO Q3 2018 QC Trends Report: Defect Trends Reflect Lower Volume, Hyper-Competitive Market

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk management solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report covers the third quarter (Q3) of 2018, and provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology(TM).

"You can tell a lot about a market from the percentage and distribution of critical defects," said Phil McCall, president and COO of ARMCO. "In Q3 2018, defect activity indicates that lenders are still dealing with the quality issues that result from downsizing. We also see how lower volume markets can impact the quality of their loans."

The report's noteworthy findings include:
* In Q3 2018, the critical defect rate reached 1.89%, its second highest level since the TRID rule went into effect in October 2015, increasing roughly 11% from the previous quarter's rate of 1.71%.
* In Q3 2018, critical defects attributed to Loan Package Documentation spiked nearly 23% over the previous quarter, making Q3 2018 the fourth consecutive quarter to see a significant increase in this category.
* In Q3 2018, the number of defects attributed to the Income/Employment category dropped almost in half, from 22.73% in the previous quarter to 12.50%.
* In Q3 2018, FHA loans accounted for a disproportionate number of critical defects, comprising 28.20% of originated loans in the benchmark, but accounting for 49.55% of loans with critical defects.

"Downsizing can leave lenders with a less qualified workforce, which in turn leads to more errors, particularly with complex transactions and usually with loan documentation," said McCall.

The Q3 2018 Trends Report revealed that the categories of Credit and Liabilities each increased moderately, and the percentage of Property Appraisal-related defects reached its highest point of the year. "This aligns with lower overall production and compressed margins, two key components of a hyper-competitive market," explained McCall. "In an effort to win market share, investors often become more aggressive by expanding eligibility guidelines, while originators try to make up for declining volume by submitting loans of lower than usual quality."

The Q3 2018 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"Analytics in quality control is vital in contracting markets," said McCall. "Lenders that don't use analytical technology will see more defects typical in lower volume, hyper-competitive markets, as well as the delays, fees, fines and even buybacks that can come with them."

ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports.

About ARMCO:
Over half of the top 20 mortgage lenders in the U.S. choose ARMCO as their provider of risk management software. ARMCO's product line includes loan quality enterprise software, services, data and analytics. Its flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(TM), has set the bar for user definability in its category. It is used at virtually every point in the mortgage lifecycle, as well as for a wide range of risk-prone business operations outside traditional mortgage origination and servicing.

ARMCO's consultative approach to customer relationships leverages 25 years of mortgage risk intel, assuring that its clients are using the most effective risk mitigation strategies, and are using the fastest, most reliable, most efficient means for preventing risk-related loss. ARMCO distributes the ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report, a free quarterly analysis of industry-wide mortgage loan quality. For more information, visit https://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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ARMCO QC Trends Report: Defect Trends Indicate Continued Lender Downsizing

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk management solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology(tm) during the second quarter (Q2) of 2018.

The report's noteworthy findings for Q2 2018 include:
* Continuation of several defect trends:
o A significant quarter-over-quarter increase (23.8% over Q1 2018) in defects related to Loan Package Documentation, which are often associated with downsizing and understaffing, a trend that began in the previous quarter, Q1 2018
o The majority of defects were attributed to the Income/Employment category, a trend that began in the previous quarter, Q1 2018
o Core underwriting and eligibility issues were the most frequent cause of critical defects, a trend that has continued since the Q1 2017
* The critical defect rate decreased slightly, from 1.72% in Q1 2018 to 1.71%.
* Defects attributed to Borrower and Mortgage Eligibility increased by roughly 70%, from 6.57% in Q1 2018 to 11.36%

"In Q2 2018, we saw continued increases in defects typically resulting from downsizing and understaffing," said Phil McCall, president and COO of ARMCO. "This seems to indicate that many lenders are still responding to the reduction in business and compressed margins with personnel changes, even in a purchase-dominated market."

Although defects associated with loan package documentation do not usually result in non-saleable loans, they can still have a detrimental impact on profitability. They often result in investors and insurers suspending loan purchases, which can reduce warehouse line capacity and result in price adjustments.

"The market's current fluctuation demonstrates the financial reasons lenders need QC technologies that are dynamic and adaptable enough to respond quickly when the market shifts," said McCall. "Sacrificing quality is a costly but unnecessary consequence of revenue reductions. In reality, no lender needs to accept less than the highest quality, regardless of contracting volumes or margins."

The Q2 2018 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy. Each ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends report includes easy-to-read charts and graphs, a summary that outlines ARMCO's overall findings, a breakdown of defect rates for each Fannie Mae loan defect category, and a short conclusion. ARMCO issues a one-year analysis for the calendar year with each fourth quarter Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report.

ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Reports are available for download, free of charge, at https://www.armco.us/learn/reports/.

About ARMCO
Over half of the top 20 mortgage lenders in the U.S. choose ARMCO as their provider of risk management software. ARMCO's product line includes loan quality enterprise software, services, data and analytics. Its flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(tm), has set the bar for user definability in its category. It is used at virtually every point in the mortgage lifecycle, as well as for a wide range of risk-prone business operations outside traditional mortgage origination and servicing.

ARMCO's consultative approach to customer relationships leverages 25 years of mortgage risk intel, assuring that its clients are using the most effective risk mitigation strategies, and are using the fastest, most reliable, most efficient means for preventing risk-related loss. ARMCO distributes the ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report, a free quarterly analysis of industry-wide mortgage loan quality.

For more information, visit https://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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MQMR: Mortgage Industry Margin Compression Calls for Fixed-Cost Approach to Compliance Support

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Mortgage Quality Management and Research, LLC (MQMR) President Michael Steer today advised lenders to adopt a fixed-cost approach to compliance support in the face of margin compression and declining per-loan profits. By investing in a fixed-cost solution for compliance, lenders can better manage their monthly expenses while ensuring they remain compliant, thus avoiding potential financial penalties associated with non-compliance.

"When internal compliance resources aren't enough, lenders often engage in a one-off relationship with an attorney or other third-party advisory firm specializing in mortgage compliance to address a specific question or issue," Steer said. "Not only is this approach more costly, but it can also expose the lender to unanticipated risk due to the natural delay caused by getting the third-party firm up-to-speed once the contract has been signed. Engaging in a more long-term relationship provides better cost savings and ensures lenders have access to the compliance advice and support they need when they absolutely need it."

To this end, MQMR created its Monthly Compliance On Demand Support program to provide a more cost-effective solution for addressing lenders' ongoing compliance needs. For a flat monthly fee, lenders have discretionary access to MQMR's team of compliance experts to address any compliance questions or concerns.

In addition, MQMR can assist lenders with a range of other compliance needs, including:

* Guidance on federal, state and loan-level questions;
* Development and review of policies and procedures;
* Reviews of advertising and marketing materials, including websites;
* Creation of a Compliance Management System (CMS);
* State examination assistance;
* Advice on loan originator compensation; and
* Recommendations on overall best practices.

"When a lender has an urgent compliance question, their first thought should not be, 'How much is it going to cost me to get this answered?'" Steer noted. "Charging by the minute or the hour may work in some instances, but in today's challenging mortgage environment, lenders simply cannot afford to incur these types of unanticipated expenses. With the fixed-cost approach MQMR provides, lenders rest easy knowing compliance advice and support is only a phone call or email away and that they'll never have to question picking up the phone to get an answer. This is why so many of the nation's top lenders have partnered with MQMR to make it through these challenging times."

About Mortgage Quality Management and Research, LLC (MQMR):

MQMR bridges the gap between risk and compliance through its suite of risk-related services. Since its inception, MQMR has launched multiple products and services to assist lenders in navigating regulatory requirements, including providing mortgage compliance consulting throughout the origination process, conducting internal audit risk assessments and ongoing internal audit support, servicing QC and subservicing oversight to master servicers, and filling the void of meeting vendor management oversight requirements. With 2,000+ operational reviews of mortgage companies, subservicers, document custodians, and vendors annually, MQMR prides itself on being an industry leader in counterparty risk and compliance.

To learn more, visit http://www.mqmresearch.com/, https://subsequentqc.com/, and https://hqvendormanagement.com/.

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ARMCO Releases Fourth Quarter / Calendar Year 2017 Trends Report

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of enterprise financial risk management solutions, announced the release of the quarterly ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report. The latest report provides loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology(TM) during the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2017 as well as the 2017 calendar year (CY).

The report's noteworthy findings include:
* The Q4 2017 critical defect rate increased slightly, from 1.65% to 1.68%
* The percentage of purchase transactions declined for the second consecutive quarter
* The CY 2017 critical defect rate increased seven percent
* The distribution of critical defects shifted significantly from 2016 to 2017.

"In 2016, the categories containing the majority of critical defects reflected the industry's reaction to TRID, which had been implemented at the end of 2015," said Phil McCall, president of ARMCO. "In 2017, we see a shift away from those categories, toward the types of defects that align with the industry's move to a purchase-driven market."

In 2017, the majority of critical defects centered around issues associated with core underwriting and eligibility issues, which is reflective of the deeper complexity of purchase transactions, as compared to refinances.

The Q4/CY 2017 ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 unique loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

Each ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report includes easy-to-read charts and graphs, a summary that outlines ARMCO's overall findings, a breakdown of defect rates for each Fannie Mae loan defect category, and a short conclusion. ARMCO issues a one-year analysis for the calendar year with each fourth quarter Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report.

"When you see how much the issues that impact quality can change quarter to quarter and year over year, it becomes apparent why lenders should use the most current data for strategies going forward," said McCall. "ARMCO provides the Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report for free because we want to arm all lenders with as many tools as possible to achieve quality in the most efficient way possible."

To obtain a copy of the report, please visit https://www.armco.us/knowledge/mortgage-qc-industry-report-2017-q4.

About ARMCO:
ARMCO - ACES Risk Management delivers web-based enterprise financial risk management solutions, as well as powerful data and analytics, to the nation's top mortgage lenders, servicers, investors and outsourcing professionals. A trusted partner devoted to client relationships, ARMCO offers best-in-class quality control and compliance software that provides U.S. banks, mortgage companies and service providers the technology and data needed to support loan integrity, meet regulatory requirements, reduce risk and drive positive business decisions.

ARMCO's flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(TM), is available at any point in the mortgage loan lifecycle, to any size lender, and is user-definable. ACES standardizes audit requirements, ties pre-funding reviews to post-closing quality control audits, enables seamless trend analysis, identifies credit, compliance and process deficiencies and helps create manageable action plans.

For more information, visit http://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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Critical Loan Defect Rates Increase for Third Consecutive Quarter

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), the leading provider of financial quality control and compliance software ACES Audit Technology(TM), announced the release of the ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report for the second quarter of 2017.

The ARMCO Mortgage QC Trends Report for second quarter 2017 relays loan quality findings for mortgages reviewed by ACES Audit Technology between April 1, 2017 and June 30, 2017.

Noteworthy findings include:

* The critical defect rate increased for the third consecutive quarter, reaching 1.76 percent in Q2 2017, an increase of 9 percent over the Q1 2017 critical defect rate of 1.61 percent.
* The top critical defect category for Q2 2017 was Borrower and Mortgage Eligibility.
* Purchase loans account for a disproportionately high number of critical defects.

"We're seeing a continuation of critical defect activity that aligns with what we'd expect in a purchase-driven market," said Phil McCall, president of ARMCO. "If they haven't already done so, lenders should consider how they'll address these specific loan quality issues if purchases continue to dominate the market."

The ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report is based on nationwide post-closing quality control loan data from over 90,000 loans selected for random full-file reviews, as was captured by the company's ACES Analytics benchmarking software. Defects listed in the report are categorized using the Fannie Mae loan defect taxonomy.

"Investors are tracking these trends as well, and could make adjustments to protect themselves from what they see as potentially damaging market trends-lenders need to be aware of that," said McCall. "Adjusting QC efforts in the short term can help lenders react to guideline changes with ease and fluidity. We provide the ARMCO QC Trends Report free of charge so all lenders have the chance to adapt and elevate loan quality, and ultimately elevate overall loan quality for the entire industry."

Each ARMCO Mortgage QC Industry Trends report includes easy-to-read charts and graphs, a summary that outlines ARMCO's overall findings, a breakdown of defect rates for each Fannie Mae loan defect category, and a short conclusion. The current and previous reports also contain an analysis of the top credit-related critical defects, which is now a regular feature of the report. ARMCO issues a one-year analysis for the calendar year with each fourth quarter Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report.

To obtain a copy of the report, please visit https://www.armco.us/knowledge/mortgage-qc-industry-report-2017-q2

About ARMCO:

ARMCO - ACES Risk Management delivers web-based audit technology solutions, as well as powerful data and analytics, to the nation's top mortgage lenders, servicers, investors and outsourcing professionals. A trusted partner devoted to client relationships, ARMCO offers best-in-class quality control and compliance software that provides U.S. banks, mortgage companies and service providers the technology and data needed to support loan integrity, meet regulatory requirements, reduce risk and drive positive business decisions.

ARMCO's flagship product, ACES Audit Technology(TM), is available at any point in the mortgage loan lifecycle, to any size lender, and is user-definable. ACES standardizes audit requirements, ties pre-funding reviews to post-closing quality control audits, enables seamless trend analysis, identifies credit, compliance and process deficiencies and helps create manageable action plans.

For more information, visit http://www.armco.us/ or call 1-800-858-1598.

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