TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
Issue link: http://digital.themreport.com/i/522162
28 | Th e M Rep o RT Feature T he mortgage industry is constantly in flux, and keeping up with the trends and market changes is necessary to the growth of any lending business. Lorie Helms, CIO at Denver- based LenderLive, has dedicated her career to helping companies integrate technology in their busi- nesses and has seen first-hand the innovating power that tech has. "Technology has enabled integration and data sharing at revolutionary levels," Helms said, "empowering organizations to outsource individual portions of their mortgage process to special- ized vendors. The ability to now focus on a single area or even a single step in the process means that vendors can become hyper- efficient and skilled in their particular area of expertise." To keep you up-to-date with the offerings on the market, some of today's most trending technol- ogy providers gave the MReport their views on what is new in the world of mortgage technology. Tech On-the-Go W e live in the era of smart devices, and no matter the tool—be it a phone, tablet, watch, or some future, unforeseen de- vice—it's clear that accessing data on the go is essential. Thanks to the mobility of today's devices, you no longer have to be tied to the office at all times. To the con- trary, greater accessibility to your important info anytime, anywhere can free you from the normal nine-to-five grind we've become accustomed to. But despite the benefits of ac- cessibility that technology brings, this movement has not always translated well to the mortgage industry, mostly due to the sensitive nature of the data that is transmitted. However, today's tech platforms are more secure than ever, alleviating previous concerns of data breaches. Shelley Leonard, EVP of enterprise product strategy at Black Knight Financial Services (BKFS), said that BKFS has made "anywhere, anytime" access to information one of the four key themes of their product strategy, which aims to fully integrate the client experience. For companies like Black Knight, whose clients include lenders and servicers looking for support throughout the full loan lifecycle, this integration equates to a variety of offerings. From mobile-enabled alerts to image capturing to easily uploadable documents, today's technology is tooled to allow all parties to work together as seamlessly as possible. Tied into this is the rise of cloud computing, according to Leonard. "The maturity of cloud computing has allowed banks to benefit from partnering with service providers that offer high- ly-efficient business models to deliver operating leverage across the loan life cycle," Leonard said. Mark McElroy, president and CEO of Pavaso, Inc., agrees that the increasing mobility of today's mortgage technology is a shift in the marketplace. "The mobility and affordabil- ity of consumer technology has paved the way for business leaders to lead the charge toward digital transformation," McElroy said. "So many sensors are available on devices now that can capture an incredible amount of data, when they weren't even feasible for con- sumer markets 10 years ago." Holding the Millennial's Attention N o talk about tech would be complete without mention- ing the millennial borrower. Today's millennial generation (those born between the 1980s and early 2000s) are going to be crucial to the current and future growth of the housing and mortgage industries. Vladimir Bien-Aime, president and CEO of Global DMS, agrees. Global DMS specializes in auto- mating the entire appraisal man- agement process and, according to Bien-Aime, the importance of the millennial homebuyer isn't going to change anytime soon. "Millenials are the industry's next pool of homebuyer," Bien-Aime said. "It's important to have a sound sales and marketing strategy in place to capitalize on their entrance to the residential lending space." In terms how tech providers can help mortgage lenders attract the millennial mortgage shopper, Pavaso's McElroy underscores the importance of enhancing the consumer experience through better customer service. "The right capability and technology will cement your relationship with the consumer and keep them engaged dur- ing their entire homeownership lifecycle," McElroy said. "This is critical to overcome the 'click, and set, and forget' mentality of the next consumer generation." Trending Tech Changing the Way Mortgage Professionals Work By Rachel Williams