Partnerships, integrations, venture capital and more
PNC Bank linked with Blend to improve its online mortgage application process. VeriFast raised money to help accelerate its expansion into mortgage underwriting. InstaMortgage and Milestones are partnering to help consumers better understand the value of their property. Snapdocs integrated with BeSmartee to help boost the mortgage closing experience for borrowers. Constellation Mortgage Solutions unveiled a new mortgage loan origination system.
PNC Bank/Blend
PNC Bank linked with Blend to improve its online mortgage application process.
Blend is the developer of a digital lending platform.
PNC said that its beefed-up mortgage application platform lets customers digitally apply for a mortgage and import bank or payroll information directly into their application just by providing their necessary credentials. This reduces how long it takes to locate necessary documents, according to the bank. After customers submit their applications, they have a single portal they use to track its status, complete outstanding tasks, and also review and electronically sign loan documentation.
Read more: Mortgage tech news roundup: Sept. 23
In addition, PNC mortgage loan officers can use their online portal to collaborate in real time with customers.
“As an organization, our goal is to continue to partner with companies across the country to build the digital-first future of financial services,” Erik Wrobel, Blend’s head of Product, said in prepared remarks.
VeriFast
Fintech startup VeriFast raised a $3.5 million seed funding that will help accelerate its expansion into mortgage underwriting.
The startup’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform relies on AI to automate financial analysis and decision making for tenant screening, mortgage underwriting and other verticals.
M3 Financial group, HGTV star and real estate investor Scott McGillivray, Michael Sarracini of Keyspire and “Millionaire Mom” investor Susan White Livermore led the round.
“We are … experiencing rapid [product] adoption with mortgage lenders who want to digitize and streamline their pre-approval and underwriting process,” VeriFast co-founder Tim Ray said in prepared remarks.
Ray added that by doing so, the technology can reduce labor costs and quicken the approval process by up to 90%.
VeriFast’s technology uses a single-source configurable API (which helps two systems link and talk to each other) to integrate biometric identity information, banking data, payroll insights and tax transcript data to customers’ existing processes.
InstaMortgage/Milestones
InstaMortgage and Milestones are partnering to help consumer better understand the value of their property as well as financial scenarios for refinancing and home equity borrowing.
Milestones focuses on a homeowner portal designed to help consumers more easily buy, move, sell, manage, and access mortgages for their home. InstaMortgage is a technology-driven mortgage lender licensed in 27 states.
Milestones’ platform monitors the value of a home, provides search options for homes for sale, and manages the selling and mortgage processes.
As part of the partnership, InstaMortgage will make Milestones client portfolios available to consumers for free through its own platform. Loan officers, through Milestones, can invite clients into web-based homeownership hubs to manage home maintenance, view home values, monitor home sales in their area, search for property, and identify mortgage refinance or trade in options.
Read more: What does refinancing mean for a mortgage?
“More than ever, it is critical for mortgage companies to identify opportunities for engaging their existing and prospective customers in new, creative ways,” InstaMortgage Chief Lending Officer Jim Black said in prepared remarks.
Snapdocs/BeSmartee
Snapdocs integrated with BeSmartee to help boost the mortgage closing experience for borrowers.
Snapdocs developed a digital closing platform, and BeSmartee is marketing a web-based digital mortgage platform for banks, credit unions and non-bank lending institutions.
Specifically, the integration is designed to drive faster closing times and reduce operating costs, with American BancShares among the first customers to use the integration. It relies in part on machine learning to automate and streamline the borrower’s closing document review and signature steps. The idea is that by taking manual administrative tasks away, the process will be more efficient and loan officers can support more homebuyers through the mortgage process.
Snapdocs’ multi-party workflow engine is also a key element.
Constellation Mortgage Solutions
Constellation Mortgage Solutions (CMS) recently rolled out a new mortgage loan origination system.
Read next: Mortgage tech news roundup: Sept. 16
Dubbed NOVA, the company is pitching the platform as making loan originations “fun again” through an intuitive user experience that also provides ease of access via the web from any work environment. The cloud-based platform is built with a dynamic user interface experience, the company said.
NOVA is quick, provides automation of many processes, and enables customizable workflows. It offers easy integrations, according to CMS.
“It’s not often that the mortgage industry makes great strides forward in technology, but with NOVA, we have developed a platform that changes the industry from a sales, operations and executive perspective,” Stephen Ryczek, Constellation’s president, said in prepared remarks.
Plans call for CMS to debut NOVA through several live demos at the MBA Annual Conference in Nashville in October.
