TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
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May 2023 » thefivestar.com 45 May 2023 T H E P O I N T the housing market has always proven to be resilient. When you apply those lessons learned, the current market is no different. Year over year, the macroeconomic fac- tors driving the different markets, including buying, selling, originating, and servicing, are consistent and simple. Equity matters, affordability is critical, and options are avail- able. Every experience prepares us for the next experience, and the meltdown was no different. Q: How did Selene work with the government and regulatory bodies during the pandemic to keep Americans in their homes in a time of economic tumult? Selene was founded in 2007, right out of the meltdown, and has a long tenure assisting at-risk or delinquent customers. We engage and interact with government agencies and regulatory bodies on a routine basis, and the time of the pandemic was no different. Internally, we maintain a team of individuals dedicated to the identification and administration of government-relief programs. When the Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF) was first created, we recognized that proactively participating in industry working groups helped define program stan- dards and best practices for both program administrators and the broader servicing industry. This early engagement allowed our customers to begin receiving relief immedi- ately upon implementation of even the pilot programs. Even today, we continue to see a consistent volume of applications and awards for our customers, and we attribute it to the HAF awareness initiatives we've implement- ed internally that are aimed at educating our customers on all the loss mitigation options available. Q: How has the landscape of the servicing space changed in this current economic environment with inflation and continued economic strain? Generally speaking, the landscape has not changed much. I think we are at an in- flection point, but servicing is a highly regu- lated industry that has always, and continues to, need to move at the speed of quality. The real impact of inflation and eco- nomic strain is on the cost to service alone. As a servicer, we are experiencing increased cost to service, and because of that, we must maintain a strong financial discipline, a steady change in management and risk control framework, and nimble technology capabilities. Those are table stakes in our industry. In this type of environment, if you're absent any of those critical disciplines, then we may see the landscape change, and it will more than likely change through consolida- tion and acquisitions. Q: What trends are you currently seeing in the servicing space? Are there any that particularly stand out? I think it goes back to some of the other responses, and what we learned from the 2007-2008 timeframe. Not surprisingly, one of the largest trends that we have seen at Selene is increased customer engagement. Technology has improved, and we have seen greater utilization rates through digital chan- nels. Because of that, we have seen better service levels through voice channels because it takes the pressure off, and we actually speak with the customers. Coming out of the pandemic, this is where past experiences have prepared us for this environment, and this is different from 2008. This time around, homeowners are prioritizing their mortgage. That's a trend we are seeing. I think the drivers of that prioriti- zation obviously are the equity positions that have been created, and the fact that the home has become the office. There is a need for a quiet, reliable place for remote workers to produce their income. In addition to that, I think individuals are prioritizing their home because there is no affordable alternative. You cannot even move down an asset class in the rental market. I think one of the other trends we see is the increased demand in home equity loans—driven solely by the rate environment. People are wanting to access equity due to inflation, and the way to do that is based on the interest rate environment. Coming out of the pandemic, this is where past experiences have prepared us for this environment, and this is different from 2008. This time around, homeowners are prioritizing their mortgage."