FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. – Member Mortgage Services Ltd. is now offering a new Web-based mortgage lending software package that automates the process for members while giving credit unions more options for financing the loan, the company said. The solution is called 24-7 Mortgage Online and automates the vast majority of the mortgage lending process, said Tim Crowley, president and founder of the Fannie Mae-approved company that has specialized in helping credit unions originate, underwrite and close first-mortgage loans since 1986. Crowley said the system is designed to provide a range of options. "For example, the credit union may use a staff member to take the application, or the members can be directed to an extremely user-friendly, short-form application that they can fill out themselves in about 15 to 20 minutes," Crowley said. "Once completed, the data from the application is downloaded to Fannie Mae automated underwriting software, and the member, or the credit union staff member, gets an approval decision in about one minute," he said. Also automated are functions such as appraisals, titles and survey ordering from providers around the country, Crowley said. The software also is set up to search the market for the best rates for members, which should help set it apart from the competition, the company president said. "What we've done here is to allow the credit union more choices," Crowley said. "Certainly, it's a great tool for putting loans on your books if that's what you need, but a lot of credit union portfolios are getting saturated with mortgage loans. "This system will allow us to search multiple alternate investors on the member's behalf, so even if the credit union can't or doesn't wish to fund the loan itself, it can offer the member an extremely competitive deal. We've spent years developing some great investor relationships." He said the company recognizes that there are "other good Web-based systems on the market, but most require the credit union to commit loans they don't intend to portfolio to a single investor, in most cases Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The company doesn't suggest that that's a bad thing, but believes there is often better pricing available for rate sensitive members." 24-7 Mortgage Online was developed jointly with Inetsolution of Utica, Mich., which Crowley said has done "extensive Web-site development work with credit unions, in addition to its long-standing relationship with MMS." He also noted that the new solution will function solely as an ASP, not as an in-house solution. "For the sake of uniformity, the site resides on MMS's secure server to assure that maintenance is universal for all clients. This concept allows MMS to market the system very inexpensively to client credit unions, while system efficiencies assure good fee income to the credit union on a per-loan basis," Crowley said. -

[email protected]