Technology

Lender Processing Services, Inc. (LPS) has launched a new reporting and analytics solution. The company says mortgage servicers can use the new LPS Business Intelligence (BI) product to measure and analyze performance indicators to help make more informed decisions about loans in their portfolios. With customizable views of loan data, users can identify and predict changes over time and quickly resolve issues that may arise.

In an effort to align and communicate with the vendor community, the REO property preservation firm Field Asset Services has formed a Vendor Advisory Council. This panel brings together field service providers from across the country and will provide the company with guidance regarding responsiveness, predictability, quality, turn times, bid response rates, and technology adoption.

Quandis, Inc., a provider of default management technology solutions, recently launched a service that runs searches on active military personnel. The technology was developed to allow mortgage servicers to comply with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), which dictates that servicers and foreclosure attorneys must follow certain processes before foreclosing on an active person in the U.S. military.

Treasury has launched a Web-based tool that allows homeowners themselves to conduct a net present value (NPV) assessment of their mortgage. Under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), servicers perform an NPV test to determine if modification is a more financially sound route to take than allowing the loan to proceed to foreclosure. Treasury is encouraging both homeowners who have been denied a HAMP mod and those considering applying for the program to use the new online calculator and share the results with their servicer.

Lender Processing Services, Inc. recently added a new property module to its McDash Loan Data suite of products. The suite is offered by LPS's Applied Analytics division. The new module supplements the McDash database with an updated view of borrower equity. It combines public records information related to second liens with the analytic capabilities of the LPS Home Price Index to provide an indication of current total loan-to-value (LTV) ratios for residential housing across the country.

Veri-Tax, LLC, a provider of income and identity verification products for banks and mortgage lenders, successfully completed a SAS-70/SSAE-16 Type II audit. Veri-Tax calls the SAS-70/SSAE-16 audit the more rigorous Type II audit, which involves an assessment of its corporate-wide policies and procedures related to handling client data. Such an audit addresses how employees access borrower tax and identity orders as well as the security of Veri-Tax's financial billing systems, information technology, and disaster recovery plans.

Interthinx, a provider of risk mitigation solutions, recently integrated business search and bankruptcy data within its FraudGUARD system to help lenders identify high-risk borrowers. According to the company, the changes ensure a more concise borrower risk review, can improve loan quality, and provide users with a fraud prevention report.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently awarded two patents to First American Data Tree LLC, a provider of digital land records. The company received the first for an invention that allows users searching an electronic real estate database to select from several similar entries suggested by the system by using a specific type of search logic. The company's second invention involves collecting and validating property data at its source, whether locally or remotely, by using a mobile device.

ISGN, a provider of end-to-end technology solutions and services to the U.S. mortgage industry, announced this week that the company has named Raghavan Tiru as its chief information officer. ISGN says Tiru has been instrumental during his career in the financial services field in designing and developing advanced information technology initiatives for applications consolidation and platform migration that have saved companies millions of dollars.

RealtyTrac recently integrated the property-rating system HomeScore on nearly 2 million foreclosure and for-sale properties on its Web site. Created by SmartZip Analytics, HomeScore is designed to allow users to pinpoint properties with the best potential for appreciation over time. The higher the HomeScore rating, the greater the home's investment potential. While properties scored above 50 are expected to outperform the market, those scored below 50 are expected to underperform.