Sierra Pacific Mortgage Co. says the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) recently concluded e-closing pilot was a great success and that the new e-closing process will significantly reduce the amount of time it takes to do a closing.
The e-closing pilot program was designed to test the effectiveness of providing homeowners with electronic documents to help empower them with an understanding of their closing documents, and to offer them a more efficient and streamlined closing process.
Home buyers were presented their documents in electronic format via a secure link to an e-sign portal three days before the actual signing appointment. This allowed borrowers more time to review their documents and prepare questions.
The electronic process also provided home buyers with new tools and resources to ensure better overall comprehension of their closing documents. During the signing appointment, the home buyers signed and submitted their electronic documents via a tablet or smartphone device.Â
The e-closing pilot is part of the CFPB's ‘Know Before You Owe’ mortgage initiative, which is designed to improve the home buying experience for consumers. This initiative includes the impending Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 (RESPA) Integrated Disclosure (TRID) rule. The TRID ruling will go into effect August 1.
Sierra Pacific was one of a handful of mortgage lenders selected to participate in the pilot program.
‘Sierra Pacific has had great success with this new process,’ says Jim Connell chief information officer for the company, in a release. ‘Our loan officers have noted that e-closing took less time than paper closings, our document package was very user-friendly, and most importantly, our borrowers were happy with the ease of this process.’
Sierra Pacific says participating in this pilot program has given it the advantage of training its employees and partners to use the new electronic closing documents and processes earlier than others in the industry.