Welcome to the MCA Monthly Update. To help you stay compliant and up-to-date, each newsletter we send contains underwriting tips, processing tips, and compliance updates. We hope that you find the content informative and useful.
For next month’s newsletter, we would like to address the biggest issues you are facing in the mortgage industry. Please let us know about any industry issues that you find confusing, or if you just want some more information. We’ll try to answer all your questions in the next newsletter.
REMINDER: APPROACHING DEADLINE OF RED FLAGS RULE
As a reminder, the Federal Trade Commission’s Red Flags Rule will go into effect in less than a month, on August 1. The FTC will require that all financial institutions and creditors, including mortgage brokers and mortgage lenders, have in place a written identity theft prevention program, also known as a Red Flag Policy. (For more information, visit www.FTC.gov or contact us with your questions.)
UNDERWRITING & PROCESSING TIPS
Based on some common findings from quality control audits, we have compiled a list of three tips from the month of June.
1. Make sure that the application and initial disclosures have correct dates. If they are mailed, be sure to date stamp when they were sent in the mail, to stay in compliance with the three day rule.
2. For Prepaid Finance Charges (PFC’s), make sure that they are disclosed accurately on the initial TIL, and clearly marked on the initial Good Faith.
3. Last month we mentioned that everyone should have a closing package from the closing agent for their file. FHA requires lenders to get and maintain copies of at least the HUD-1’s, Note, Deed of Trust, and the final Truth in Lending.
FHA UPDATE
HUD frequently publishes updates, known as Mortgagee Letters, containing new policies and other information for lenders. Since our last newsletter, HUD has published three additional letters. Below is a brief summary of all three:
• Energy Efficient Mortgages – Increase in the Dollar Amount of Energy Efficient Improvements: Letter 09-18. “In addition to the base FHA maximum mortgage amount limit, which is calculated on the value of the home, the mortgage loan amount for an Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) can be increased by the cost of effective energy improvements…
The maximum amount of the portion of the EEM for energy improvements is the lesser of 5% of:
o the value of the property, or
o 115% of the median area price of a single family dwelling, or
o 150% of the conforming Freddie Mac limit.” (Click here to view the entire letter.)
• Condominium Approval Process – Single Family Housing: Letter 09-19. FHA “is implementing a new approval process for Condominium Projects to insure mortgages on individual units… FHA will now allow lenders to determine project eligibility, review project documentation, and certify to compliance of Section 203(b) of the NHA and 24 CFR 203 of HUD’s regulations.
…[this letter] provide[s] guidelines and instructions on options available to lenders to receive mortgage insurance on condominium units which are located in a project.” (Click here to view the entire letter.)
• Processing Pre-Application Firm Invitation and Firm Commitment Extension Requests: Letter 09-20. This letter discusses FHA’s “policy to grant temporary authority to Multifamily Hub/Program Center Directors to grant one extension, for up to 90-days, of the pre-application firm invitation letter and one 120-day extension of an issued Firm Commitment. The authority granted under this Mortgagee Letter expires December 31, 2009.” (Click here to view the entire letter.)
To view all HUD Mortgagee Letters for the year, click here.
Showing posts with label mortgage compliance advisors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mortgage compliance advisors. Show all posts
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Monday, July 7, 2008
Mortgage Compliance Advisors Launches File Audit & FHA Approval & Quality Control Services
June 13, 2008 ( PowerHomeBiz ) - Salt Lake City, UT www.MortgageComplianceAdvisors.com -- Mortgage Compliance Advisors, LLC (MCA) -- FHA approval is made simple by following the step by step process that Mortgage Compliance Advisors offers. MCA will walk you through the costs, paperwork, and FHA requirements to determine feasibility. MCA also provides an outsourcing solution to brokers, lenders, and financial institutions that alleviates the burden and expense of regularly auditing, in-house, a 10% file sampling as required by federal and/or state agencies.
Also, for lenders who are not FHA approved and want to apply for approval, Mortgage Compliance Advisors will guide and help with the entire process including:
Determining feasibility of approval -- Supply needed forms Help with preparation of documentation required by FHA for approval Provide resources for bonding/audits/sponsors – Help with assembling of approval package Follow up with FHA if difficulties arise Mortgage Compliance Advisors’ file audit process is efficient and effective. First, MCA randomly chooses, from a list provided by the lender, files to be reviewed. FHA requires file audits on 10% of a company’s closed files. Depending on volume, these audits are to be completed either on a monthly or quarterly basis. Some states require pre and post-closing file audits as well.
Once Mortgage Compliance Advisors has received the files to be reviewed, the assigned auditor uses a standardized checklist MCA has developed to review all documentation contained in a file and re-verifies documentation as needed. The auditor will also compare documentation to insure accuracy, as well as review the appraisal. A new credit report will be pulled on every file and appraisal field reviews will be completed as agency guidelines require. Once the file audits have been completed, MCA will provide a management report of significant findings and summaries.
In addition to full file audits (post-closing, pre-closing, and defaults) and FHA approval services, MCA provides loan file fraud detection services, training and CE courses, quality control plans, operational reviews, and consulting services.
About Mortgage Compliance Advisors, LLC (MCA):
MCA was founded on the premise of providing mortgage brokers, retail lenders, wholesale lenders, and banking institutions of all sizes with a sound alternative for meeting their mortgage compliance needs. MCA’s principals, Bob Warnock and Craig Christensen, have a combined sixty years of experience in the mortgage industry. Thirteen years of Bob Warnock’s thirty-five year career in the banking and mortgage industry were spent at the Salt Lake City HUD/FHA office, first as an underwriting specialist, then branch chief over underwriting and insuring, and finally as Field Office Chief with responsibility to oversee lender approval, underwriting, insuring and the assignment program. Much of Craig Christensen’s 25 year career has been in management positions with national retail and wholesale lenders.
Contact Info:
Brandt Page-Director of Sales & Marketing
5505 South 900 East, Suite 110 Salt Lake City, UT 84117 Phone: 801-649-6038 - Fax: 801-264-0301 bpage@mortgagecomplianceadvisors.com
http://mortgagecomplianceadvisors.com
Also, for lenders who are not FHA approved and want to apply for approval, Mortgage Compliance Advisors will guide and help with the entire process including:
Determining feasibility of approval -- Supply needed forms Help with preparation of documentation required by FHA for approval Provide resources for bonding/audits/sponsors – Help with assembling of approval package Follow up with FHA if difficulties arise Mortgage Compliance Advisors’ file audit process is efficient and effective. First, MCA randomly chooses, from a list provided by the lender, files to be reviewed. FHA requires file audits on 10% of a company’s closed files. Depending on volume, these audits are to be completed either on a monthly or quarterly basis. Some states require pre and post-closing file audits as well.
Once Mortgage Compliance Advisors has received the files to be reviewed, the assigned auditor uses a standardized checklist MCA has developed to review all documentation contained in a file and re-verifies documentation as needed. The auditor will also compare documentation to insure accuracy, as well as review the appraisal. A new credit report will be pulled on every file and appraisal field reviews will be completed as agency guidelines require. Once the file audits have been completed, MCA will provide a management report of significant findings and summaries.
In addition to full file audits (post-closing, pre-closing, and defaults) and FHA approval services, MCA provides loan file fraud detection services, training and CE courses, quality control plans, operational reviews, and consulting services.
About Mortgage Compliance Advisors, LLC (MCA):
MCA was founded on the premise of providing mortgage brokers, retail lenders, wholesale lenders, and banking institutions of all sizes with a sound alternative for meeting their mortgage compliance needs. MCA’s principals, Bob Warnock and Craig Christensen, have a combined sixty years of experience in the mortgage industry. Thirteen years of Bob Warnock’s thirty-five year career in the banking and mortgage industry were spent at the Salt Lake City HUD/FHA office, first as an underwriting specialist, then branch chief over underwriting and insuring, and finally as Field Office Chief with responsibility to oversee lender approval, underwriting, insuring and the assignment program. Much of Craig Christensen’s 25 year career has been in management positions with national retail and wholesale lenders.
Contact Info:
Brandt Page-Director of Sales & Marketing
5505 South 900 East, Suite 110 Salt Lake City, UT 84117 Phone: 801-649-6038 - Fax: 801-264-0301 bpage@mortgagecomplianceadvisors.com
http://mortgagecomplianceadvisors.com
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