Mortgage Application Management Subject of New IBM Program

International Business Machines (IBM) said on Monday it formed a unit that will sell software and computers for processing mortgage application data and also manage processing of home loan paperwork on behalf of lenders.

The world’s largest computer services company will offer technology to help process home loan applications, automating some of the complexities faced by companies collecting documents to complete mortgage loans.

IBM, which will base the new business in Charlotte, N.C., will provide the software, hardware and consulting services to the mortgage lender, which will use the products in their own computer centers.

The new business will potentially offer a processing service where it will take full responsibility for processing a mortgage loan after the application is completed.

This will happen by the company collecting and reviewing all paperwork that the underwriting department needs before deciding whether to make a loan.

Processing a mortgage generally takes at least a month as lenders gather myriad documents ranging from original home loan applications to real estate appraisals, credit reports and flood certifications.

IBM’s products use digital imaging, character recognition and other computer technologies to pull those records into a single package that underwriters can review when deciding whether to approve home loans.

The unit will also offer a smaller mortgage company the option of running those products off of computers in IBM’s own data centers.

IBM will also offer outsourced loan processing services, where its own employees will handle the processing of a mortgage from the time mortgage applications are completed until all the necessary documents are compiled into a package that is ready for consideration by an underwriter.

SOURCE: Reuters