The Mortgage Asset Research Institute (MARI), a ChoicePoint company, has released its new MARI Loan Fraud Alert Service (LFAS). MARI LFAS is a mortgage industry-contributed loan process database that enables lenders and investors to identify potential application risk, patterns of fraud and hidden relationships among transaction parties.
MARI LFAS compares a lender's loan-level data, which includes borrower, collateral and professional information, against industry-contributed loan application data during the origination process. According to the company, the sophisticated match logic identifies patterns such as multiple closings for a single borrower, undisclosed second escrows or mortgages for the same property, inflated appraisals for the same property within a short period of time and multiple loan applications for the same property.
The comparison helps recognize application inconsistencies and common patterns that may be indicative of fraudulent activity. By helping identify risk at the earliest stages, lenders can also improve their quality-control processes and reduce redundant application reviews.