TheMReport

MReport July 2022

TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.

Issue link: http://digital.themreport.com/i/1472906

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 9 of 67

8 | M R EP O RT MTECH markets, including consumers who live in credit deserts and are credit invisible," NFHA President and CEO Lisa Rice said. "Our collaboration in developing the SPCP toolkit demonstrates that NFHA and the MBA share a commitment to promoting justice, fairness, inclusion, and equity. We also share a commitment to strength- ening communities, increasing sustainable homeownership, and growing our economy. We urge all lenders to use this toolkit to develop impactful programs to better serve borrowers of color, women, people with disabilities, and other underserved groups." SPCPs assist in the revitaliza- tion of communities and assist lenders in supporting consumers trying to reach important finan- cial goals. While SPCPs have been available under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) since 1974, the toolkit is designed to expand their usage by lenders, helping to improve minority households' ability to achieve homeownership. "HCA is thrilled to provide our technical expertise in design- ing products and programs that reach underserved communities for this project, and for our lend- er partners actively engaged in building SPCPs to bring to mar- ket," Homeownership Council of America President and CEO Gabe Del Rio said. "Working together, we build and enhance credit delivery systems that make homeownership attainable for economically disadvantaged populations." New Valuation Solutions INHABET TO OFFER COMPLIANT DIY PROPERTY VALUATIONS E quity Valuation Partners (EVP), a provider of home value services, valuation tools, and property value data, has announced the launch of In- habet, a one-stop platform that empowers lenders to generate their own compliant estimate of value for residential and com- mercial real estate properties. Because the demand for home valuations far exceeds the supply of appraisers, many lenders are expe- riencing delays in closing real estate transactions. Using the internal evaluation bank regulatory carveout, Inhabet eliminates these obstacles by utilizing data and an appraisal platform to enable lenders to come up with their own estimates of value in a controlled environment. "When appraisal management companies first emerged after the financial crisis, I saw an op- portunity to transform apprais- als for appraisers, banks, credit unions, and portfolio lenders with a product that did not require an appraiser's inspection," EVP Founder, CEO and Principal Drew Watson said. "Today, with the unveiling of the Inhabet platform, we have made it pos- sible for a lender's trained staff to complete an estimate of value themselves." The Inhabet platform is self-contained and includes the comparable sales data, app-based inspection platform, and valuation platform. No third-party login is required for Inhabet, and there is no software to install. Instead, users with basic knowledge of real estate transactions are guided through a multistep process that leverages big data to simulate the appraisal process. After gathering data about the property, such as its age, square footage, interior condition, and surrounding neigh- borhood characteristics, Inhabet helps lenders select and assess comparable properties. Following refinements to comparable adjustments, Inhabet's reconciliation process completes the compliant value estimate. If a lender feels they are unable to complete a valuation themselves, they can pass the valuation on to EVP to com- plete with the click of a button. "We came to a point where we could not handle all the orders that were coming our way," EVP President and COO Todd Rasmussen said. "So, we devel- oped Inhabet to empower lenders to use our data and process to create an estimate of value on their own. Compared to obtaining an appraised value or a hybrid appraisal from an appraiser, there is no faster, more cost-effective valuation solution than Inhabet." Couch Surfing for Homes ZILLOW EXPANDS AI- INTERACTIVE TOURS Z illow has made shopping for a home easier for pro- spective buyers, as its new AI-generated floor plan serves as a guide to give shoppers digital insight and detail so they can more quickly and easily narrow their search to only the homes they love and want to see in- person. Zillow's new tech uses machine learning to not only generate floor plans, but import each listing photo and places it on the floor plan, giving shop- pers an in-person perspective of a home's shape and flow. "Zillow surfing has always been about imagining all the possibilities a move could bring, and Zillow surfing 2.0 is bringing

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of TheMReport - MReport July 2022