ISGN Corp., offering end-to-end technology solutions and services to the mortgage industry, has introduced Home Equity Advantage, a suite of products designed to help home equity lenders transform and scale their operations.
With the market environment now favorable for increased home equity lending, Home Equity Advantage combines technology, title/settlement, valuation and outsourced fulfillment in a cost-effective solution set targeted at the unique dynamics of the home equity process. Home equity lenders that are just starting out or looking to build their existing business can choose one or all of the solutions in the suite to enhance the borrower experience and mitigate risk.
The suite includes LienSure, designed to provide a framework for lenders to evaluate and mitigate specific risk factors when underwriting home equity lines of credit and close-end home equity loans. LienSure can be used as an alternative to uninsured products, such as a deed report or property report, without an insurance wrapper, thereby mitigating the risks covered by the policy, ISGN claims in a press release.
In addition to traditional appraisal products, ISGN offers Desktop Evaluation, a proprietary valuation solution completed by licensed, local appraisers. Leveraging analytics, combined with the experience of a licensed appraiser, the solution meets state and federal regulations and is both USPA and IAG compliant. It can also be combined with a property condition report to assess the subject property's current condition and the surrounding market.
‘Home equity lending has historically been a viable product on a standalone basis and a counter-cyclical product to the first mortgage refinance market,’ states Paul Imura, chief marketing officer for ISGN, in the release. ‘During the mortgage crisis, home equity lending retreated as home values declined and equity evaporated, leaving many in a negative equity position."
‘Over the last five quarters, however, more than 3.2 million borrowers have reached positive equity,’ Imura continues. ‘Because of this, coupled with a declining refinance market, ISGN predicts that the market will see an increase in home equity lending in 2014. With $5 trillion in untapped home equity as of the second quarter, lenders must prepare to meet this increased demand.’
ISGN's technology can also be readily integrated with other systems, thus allowing lenders to more easily outsource either an entire process or just parts of a process, without the hassles and delays associated with custom integrations. This, in turn, gives lenders the ability to more readily scale their home equity lending operations.