Blog
Equity National Title is a company that's dedicated not only to awesome experiences and community involvement, but to education as well. We maintain this blog so that we can be a valuable resource to homeowners, lenders and realtors.
By: Equity National Title April 20, 2017 Title A Closer Look
Creating Informed Borrowers...a confused client ...
Even for the best prepared and most professional lenders or closing professionals, the closing table can be a chaotic and confusing place. So it’s not hard to understand how a settlement feels for many consumers. The last-minute nature of the document preparation, although usually not the fault of the lender or the title company (in some cases, it’s not really anyone’s fault, to be honest) and the enormous host of legal requirements (...
By: Equity National Title April 11, 2017 Borrowers Why Feedback Matters
A Word from Jim: A Brief History of Borrower Sat...
Years ago, while discussing the insights into borrower behavior we were deriving from our borrower feedback, I was encouraging a mortgage company CEO to consider doing his own surveying, and I can still remember his reply. He looked at me, took off his glasses for emphasis, and said: ‘Jim, I am in the mortgage business, not the customer satisfaction business.’ On some level, I understood what he meant. The word “profession” brings to m...
By: Equity National Title April 11, 2017 Elcosings A Closer Look
On Unicorns; Millennials; e-Mortgages and a Futu...
Lately, we’ve welcomed back an old friend to the mortgage industry’s trade publications. When we’re not seeing headlines about deregulation; rising interest rates; the future of the CFPB or GSE reform, we’re seeing…the return of the e-mortgage. If you’ve been around the title or mortgage industry for a while, you know that this is a topic that pops up every five or six years. In the past, it tended to be limited to confere...
By: Equity National Title April 4, 2017 Borrowers A Closer Look
In the client’s own words: what borrowers say...
Some like to talk about the importance of a good first impression. But what about a strong final impression? When it comes to mortgage lending, the closing or settlement can leave a powerful memory (good or bad) in the mind of the borrower. Unfortunately, having a bad experience seems to have more impact on repeat business than having a good experience. One recent PriceWaterhouseCoopers survey, as reported in Nationa...
By: Equity National March 21, 2017 Mortgage A Closer Look
Vendor Management--What's your title company doi...
We’re going to take a little break from the numbers for a moment to talk a bit about third and fourth party liability. Vendor management. By now, most lenders understand that the CFPB has proclaimed it’s holding them accountable for the actions of their “service providers.” It’s probably why your vetting and oversight policy manual has quintupled in size in the last year. (Wait. You don’t have a manual…? ...
By: Equity National Title March 13, 2017 Mortgage A Closer Look
Looking back, was TRID worth it to the consumer?
As we mentioned earlier (Let's put TRID to the test), we thought it might be time to ask the borrower—the intended beneficiary of the CFPB’s new TRID rule—if that rule had, indeed, made a positive effect upon their home loan experiences. You’ll recall that TRID was engineered by the CFPB, primarily, to prevent surprises (especially as to the settlement fees) at the closing table by driving better communication and collaboration...
By: Equity National February 14, 2017 TRID A Closer Look
Let’s put TRID to the test.
Last year around this time (Winter of 2016), the entire mortgage industry revolved around one word: TRID. In fact, this one regulatory change had such an impact on how we do business (from loan origination right down to closing) that it became its own punchline: Example 1: T.R.I.D.: &...
By: Equity National Title January 31, 2017 Mortgage A Closer Look
Deeper Dive into the Data—Still think the litt...
We talked a little bit recently about the importance of “the little things” when it comes to delivering service for a mortgage transaction—namely, the closing. (check out our last blog here) It’s just common sense that a closing professional arrive on time, right? It may be common sense or instinct. But try presenting that argument to a Board of Directors. Or a stockholder meeting. Let us know how you ...
By: Equity National January 17, 2017 Mortgage A Closer Look
When in Doubt, Talk it Out!
As you know, Equity National Title, which serves as a closing professional for numerous mortgage lenders, has had the privilege of surveying over 17,000 homebuyers about their experience. Needless to say, one of the things our lending clients want to know about almost immediately was how well the consumer felt treated by his/her loan officer (l.o.). The good news for our lending clients is that over 80 percent of those surveyed said t...
By: Equity National January 10, 2017 Mortgage A Closer Look
When “running a few minutes behind” just won...
Let’s face it. We live in a world that has different social standards than the world we lived in even 20 years ago. A less formal world. Restaurants which once required a jacket and tie are now just fine with jeans and a fairly clean shirt (ironing: optional). Thank you notes have become a delightful formality, the occasional reminder of days gone by. To this new, business casual, upscale comfort food world in which we live, punc...