No one less than a network head is warning mortgage professionals across the country after finding four REDX reports attached to his own name, specifically tied to his AMP designation.
No one less than a network head is warning mortgage professionals across the country after finding four REDX reports attached to his own name, specifically tied to his AMP designation.
“I really think most brokers are simply unaware that this can and does happen,” Ron De Silva, head of RMAI told MortgageBrokerNews.ca Wednesday. “I really would like an explanation for why this is happening – why deciding not to renew your AMP designation should result in a REDX report being created. It doesn’t seem to fit with the whole purpose of REDX which as stated on the website is to “Prevent Fraud, Manage Risk, Protect your interests.'”
The concerns come on the heels of his discovery of not one, but four such incident reports now appended to his file on the industry database meant to alert lenders to the fraudulent activity of mortgage professionals.
The first three REDX “hits” stems from De Silva’s delay in renewing his AMP. The last was generated after he decided not to renew, period.
The respected industry vet is concerned that those marks against him could put off lenders and underwriters who fail to study the exact nature of the reports but use their mere existence to disqualify a broker.
“What’s even more of a concern for me,” he said, “is the many other brokers who may have had the same thing happen to them just because they made the decision not to renew their AMP designation and that they don’t even know a report was generated. All brokers should request a free copy of their own REDX report by completing and submitting the online form at www.Redx.ca”.
De Silva is just the latest mortgage professional to sound the alarm over what many argue is the growing abuse of the REDX system, which relies on lenders and, indeed, information made public by CAAMP to generate incident reports as red flags to other REDX members. Brokers are also concerned that under REDX rules only the member who posted the report can remove it.
“The whole purpose of REDX is for a lender to determine if the brokers is suitable to work with,” the Ontario broker told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “I just want CAAMP or whoever to explain how opting out of a designation that is not mandatory to our profession somehow indicates that the broker isn’t suitable to partner with. I could perhaps understand an incident report being generated if CAAMP withdrew the designation from a member for ethical reason, but not because the AMP him- or herself decided not to renew.”
CAAMP President Jim Murphy argues that AMP membership rolls are public information, although isn’t confirming or denying whether the association directly provides that information to REDX.
“Our membership information, including members who have their AMP, is public information,” he told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “It has been available online for several years and prior to that in print. In terms of recourse you would have to follow up with REDX.”
