Press Release
Contact: Dick Roberts
Roberts Communications
412.535.5000
droberts@rob-com.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THE TIME FOR e-MORTGAGES HAS ARRIVED
Homebuyers can now handle entire mortgage transaction
electronically via the Internet at ASAPmortgageonline.com
PITTSBURGH — There's a quiet revolution going on in the mortgage industry: Home buyers can now secure mortgages and closing on sales as easily and conveniently as they purchase an airline or movie ticket.
With the help of early-adopter and Pittsburgh-based Atlantis Financial Services, Inc. and its new service ASAPmortgageonline.com, borrowers will go through the entire process — from application to registering with the County Courthouse — without the mounds of messy paperwork that is currently required by traditional mortgage companies.
With proprietary software developed over the past two years, electronic mortgages are now a reality, according to David Nearhoof, Chief Executive Officer of Atlantis Financial Services, Inc.
"Today, millions of individuals and companies have successfully made the leap from using the Internet as an information tool to using it as a place where they conduct business," said Nearhoof. "There's little doubt that the Internet is emerging as one of the most important transactions mediums.
"Since you can buy just about anything online, the reality is that securing a mortgage had to be possible, that is, loans originated without fuss and bother."
The Mortgage Bankers Association, through the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO), has been establishing voluntary eMortgage standards. The latest MISMO protocols, Version 2.1, are now available for lenders and the rest of the industry to consider.
"eMortgages make a great deal of sense," said Nearhoof. "You can save a lot of time and money now that the entire process is reduced to electrons sloshing around a handful of computers — savings which will be passed along to consumers."
How electronic are they?
According to Nearhoof, there are several advantages for the home buyer when using ASAPmortgageonline.com:
Turnaround time — much of the time spent on loan approval in the past came from moving bulky paperwork from one desk to another. Not only can electronic forms be transferred almost instantaneously, but more than one person can access and work on them.
"That can cut approval time from typically 7 to 24 hours to just 7 minutes," said Nearhoof. "Borrowers will also save lots of time by filling out just one standardized set of forms.
"One of MISMO's primary functions has been to develop and gain industry-wide acceptance of standards and protocols, so lenders will be able to access applications and process them easily. That can eliminate tons of repetitive work."
Cost — "Much of the savings will come from eliminating the production, management and maintenance of paper," said Nearhoof. "Just the sheer delivery costs add up.
"There will also be savings in quality control. Errors can be found and fixed in many different documents much more easily and quickly. It has the potential to reduce manpower."
Nearhoof said loan officers will be able to process more loans, increasing their efficiency. He estimates e-mortgage savings at about $2,000 on an average loan based on ASAPmortgageonline.com fees of a 3/4% versus 2½%.
Accuracy — While the actual process of originating a loan involves lots of players, corrections can be made in many electronic documents at once, rather than going through each individual hard copy.
Nearhoof said the ASAPmortgageonline.com process will be inclusive and involve participants in the complete process — loan officers, underwriters, appraisers, surveyors, title firms, abstracters, attorneys, closing agents and others — all of whom will use the same electronic system and their data and information will mesh.
"This means the electronic applications on one company's computer system can talk to another company's applications without a hiccup and without retooling," said Nearhoof.
Security — Electronic signatures? With the key legislation that enabled such a process, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) and the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN), signed into law in 1999 and 2000 respectively, the technology exists to provide consumers with a secure and valid instrument under the law that is as valid as a personal signature.
"The ESIGN legislation established transactional parity between traditional pen-and-ink transactions and electronic ones," said Nearhoof. "This creates tremendous benefits for partners in the mortgage industry.
"Electronic signatures also benefit consumers by doing away with the traditional mounds of paper that slow down and complicate transactions."
Nearhoof said that confidentiality of all information is ensured in the e-mortgage process.
"Personal information cannot be accessed by a third party unless they are part of a specific mortgage closing," he said. "And information is not sold or shared."
With ASAPmortgageonline.com, the process is available, but are consumers ready?
Seventy-five percent of consumers are willing to complete the entire mortgage process online, according to "Myers Internet/Mortgage Banking Internet Mortgage Industry Study" released by Myers Internet, Inc., a San Jose-based Web services developer for mortgage originators.
"With all the connections now in place, the process will be shorter and cheaper," said Nearhoof.
Savings aside, the hoped for big benefit in e-mortgage processing will be a smoother, less error-prone and less surprise-laden process says Nearhoof.
"A lot of errors have been made in the traditional home loan process, which can create problems for the consumer," said Nearhoof. "We'll provide a system of better automation and personal service that will reduce and eliminate these errors as it takes out some of the human factor in processing data.
"No one likes to have their closing delayed because of incorrect closing documents being delivered at the closing table."
About ASAPmortgageonline.com
ASAPmortgageonline.com is at the forefront of the new e-mortgage revolution that is allowing home buyers to integrate the mortgage process seamlessly into their lifestyles from home or work 24/7.
The ASAPmortgageonline.com service is provided to consumers by Atlantis Financial Services, Inc., an independent mortgage company that is leading the industry in combining exceptional customer service with ground-breaking technology.
