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TH E M R EP O RT | 5 MTECH Using Data for Disaster Preparedness HOW CAN DATA AND ANALYTICS BE UTILIZED TO MANAGE RISKS TO PROPERTIES SUCH AS CRIME, VANDALISM, AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS? M Report's sister publica- tion, DS News, recently hosted a webinar en- titled "Risky Business: Using Data and Analytics to Protect Prop- erties," presented by Safeguard Properties. The webinar was moder- ated by Tim Rath, AVP, Business Development for Safeguard Properties, and featured insights from Jason Heckman, AVP, Mobile and Analytics for Safeguard Properties and John Thibaudeau, Director, Single-Family Real Estate for Fannie Mae into how technolo- gy is helping property preservation companies to identify cost-effective and timely solutions to protect and preserve homes. During the webinar, Thibaudeau said that technology had made great strides to assist with property preservation, repairs, and marketing. He spoke about the tools and apps that are helping Fannie Mae get real-time information for proper- ties that need inspection. They are also used to guide inspectors and users on what to look for once they reach the property and help Fannie Mae to absorb all the appraisal data to prioritize their work. Discussing how data and tech- nology go hand-in-hand for home repairs, Thibaudeau said that one of the key challenges companies face is ensuring consistency. Speaking about the evolution of technology in property preserva- tion, Heckman said that the data being used in property preserva- tion at present helped companies understand the story that each house had to tell. He said that the evolution of data was also helping to "proactively manage anything that can go wrong." While buying and implementing such technology can be a costly affair, Heckman pointed out that the benefits of these systems far outweighed the cost in terms of better targeting of potential issues and managing risks that include the prevention of services to the wrong property. Answering a question on how servicing technology had changed today compared with what it used to be, Thibadeau said, "It is exciting to see how fast things continue to change. Today, speed is of the essence when you're mov- ing to new technology to keep an advantage." Additionally, he said that technology continued to move on mobile solutions. "At the end of the day, we would love to provide technology to our customers where they can do business with us from anywhere." "The introduction of the iPhone really changed what we could do in terms of collecting data and getting things in real time. The improvement from where it was when we started in the mid-2000s to where we are now, has greatly changed the capabilities of what's available and what we can actually do," Heckman said. Speaking about the type of technology that is being developed to address exceptions to vendor feedback, Heckman explained that it really went back to mobile tech- nology and the aggregation of data. "We have capabilities to not only use scripts and text but also video capabilities which allow us to tell that story in real time," he said. Looking at future technolo- gies that were likely to advance property preservation procedures, both Thibadeau and Heckman concluded that artificial intelligence (AI) was the way forward. "The more interesting thing we're seeing today is around AI and using machine learning to automate processes," Thibadeau said. "It's go- ing to continue to evolve over the coming years." Heckman added, "With the ad- vent of AI, and the Big Data move- ment, the way data is being stored is changing and will continue to evolve as AI models improve." Protection for Mortgage Borrowers GUILD MORTGAGE'S HOMEBUYER PROTECTION PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO HELP PROTECT CUSTOMERS' RATE, EARNEST MONEY, AND CLOSING DATE. G uild Mortgage, an inde- pendent mortgage lender based in California, has announced Homebuyer Protec- tion, a program designed to give customers added protection and peace of mind during the mort- gage process. The company said that its Homebuyer Protection program combines three of Guild's loan programs and services, allowing homebuyers to protect their rate, earnest money, and closing date. With Lock and Shop, the customer can lock in their interest rate for 90 days while shopping for a home. Once they have found a home, they will have the option to float-down their rate, at no cost, if rates decrease. Credit Approval Protection gives buyers, agents and sellers added confidence in Guild's pre-approval process. If the company issues a preliminary credit approval from underwriting, but is unable to close the homebuyer's transaction, Guild said that it will pay up to $1,000 for inspections, appraisals, or relocation expenses in- curred for the home purchase. The company will also reimburse up to $5,000 in earnest money deposits if Guild is unable to close the loan. Finally, under Homebuyer Express with 17 Day Closing Guarantee, Guild will pay qualifying customers $500 toward closing costs if delays solely by the company to prevent the loan from closing on time, in 17 days or more. "When shopping for a home, customers want to know that they're working with partners they can trust throughout the process," said Mary Ann McGarry, President and CEO of Guild Mortgage. "Homebuyer Protection gives customers the flexibility to shop with confidence knowing their rate is protected. Once it's time to purchase the home, buyers can trust Guild to close their loan on time. If we can't, we'll cover some of their costs. This extra pro- tection will help more people find the home they want and the right loan to help them get there." The Homebuyer Protection program is available on FHA, VA, and conventional loans. To qualify for the Homebuyer Express 17 Day Closing Guarantee, the customer must be credit approved prior to executing the purchase and sales agreement, and the purchase and sales contract must be provided within 72 hours of execution. All "It is exciting to see how fast things continue to change. Today, speed is of the essence when you're moving to new technology to keep an advantage." —John Thibaudeau, Director, Single-Family Real Estate, Fannie Mae