The Work Number, an employment and income verification service of Equifax based in St. Louis, recently launched a new product, Point In Time, which, according
to the company, is a response to market demands for loan-level documentation to investigate repurchases and mortgage insurance rescissions.

Designed to provide retro income verification services to validate and document a borrower’s employment and income for loan funding, Point In Time was created to help lenders, insurers, and investors manage unstable loans by automating and streamlining the quality assurance process.

The Work Number cites Freddie Mac’s Q1 2010 reviews of performing and non-performing loans, which found that income misrepresentation is a top underwriting deficiency, resulting from inaccurate or insufficient data

and calculation errors at the time of loan origination. There are a significant number of loans being returned for some type of data deficiency.

The company also cites Fitch Ratings’ estimate that the four largest U.S. banks have received $10.7 billion in pending repurchase requests from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through Q2 2010.

“As repurchase activity and instances of fraud both continue to rise, exact documentation is essential in order for lenders to avoid excessive obligations or undisclosed mortgage debt,” said Janet Ford, SVP of the Work Number. “Point In Time offers a ‘retro’ income verification review that lends transparency to the underwriting efforts that were performed at the time of origination.”

Point In Time’s automated workflow captures and reuses employer data by tracking and documenting agent progress and findings. It can also access the Work Number’s employer database of current and historical payroll data for quick delivery.

According to the Work Number, the program saves training time, reduces resource strain, and improves productivity.

“With waves of foreclosures hitting the market, lenders and investors need an easy way to prove the accuracy of loan-level documents to defend against fault, and Point In Time offers a quick, simple, and accurate solution to help avoid unnecessary and costly buybacks,” Ford said.