Top AMC, title insurance company digs deeper into reverse space

The reverse space is growing, and a top AMC and title insurer is making it easier for loan officers to originate reverse mortgages

Mortgage Information Services, a top appraisal management and title insurance company, is digging deeper into the reverse space than ever before.

“We’re committed to this space, and we think there are a lot of good things going on there,” said David Stroop, MIS regional vice president. “It’s had a bad reputation – the mainstream media likes to color it a certain way – but the leaders in the industry are trying to highlight the advantages of this product.”

The company recently made it easier for LOs using its software to originate HECM reverse mortgages.

“We’ve recently enhanced our title fee quote calculator to include HECM rates. We’ve been in the space for as long as we’ve been in business, but we really recommitted to it a couple of years ago,” Stroop said. “A year and a half ago, we released our online fee quote generator to generate preliminary HUDs, show title insurance fees, title and escrow fees and recording fees. But because HECM rates tend to be different in many states, we couldn’t quote reverse rates through the online calculator. So we released an enhancement with the HECM rates. We’re really happy with what we put out there.”

Mortgage Information Services is also integrating its services with ReverseVision, the premier reverse mortgage software provider.

“We integrated our appraisal services with their software last year. We were actually the first AMC to do that. And we’re in the process of integrating out title software as well,” Stroop said. “That’s an exciting little jump in that space. In the forward space, you see a lot of that, software integrated with a dozen different LOS’s in the forward space. But it was sort of new ground for the reverse industry, and we’re happy to move that needle forward a little.”

Originators using MIS for their reverse business will find that the integration makes the process more efficient, Stroop said.

“It makes it easier for the user,” he said. “It streamlines the title-ordering and closing escrow process. You don’t have to go to a different website for that order. You don’t have to fax in or phone in or email in an order. It takes that information directly from the LOS, and the user literally hits a button. It sends that to us, and we deliver the order back through the system. There’s no need to go to our website to pull off the supporting documents, no need to even receive an email with the information. It’s sent directly back into the LOS. All that information is available on our website all the time too, but this reduces the amount of effort needed to go out and get the info.”