Homecomings Financial Launches Internet-Based Automated Underwriting System for Mortgage Brokers

		GMAC-RFC LOGO GMAC-RFC (Residential Funding Corporation) logo. GMAC-RFC, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors Acceptance Corporation, is America's largest private-label issuer of mortgage-backed securities and a leading warehouse lender. The company leverages its strengths in securitization, lending and investment to offer a broad portfolio of innovative capital solutions. The company is headquartered in Minneapolis and operates in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Japan. Contact: http://www.rfc.com. (PRNewsFoto)[KI] MINNEAPOLIS, MN USA

Recommends Product Alternatives With Underwriting Approval in Less Than 30 Seconds MINNEAPOLIS, June 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Homecomings Financial(SM) today introduced an Internet-based automated underwriting system that allows mortgage brokers to submit loan applications and receive underwriting decisions online and at the point of sale. The new Assetwise Direct(SM) system processes applications and provides responses in less than 30 seconds. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000324/MNF002 ) "Assetwise Direct helps mortgage brokers provide their clients with fast point-of-sale loan approval so they close more loans," said Lee Jacobsohn, executive vice president, Homecomings Financial. "This system speeds the approval process by defining what information is needed to complete the loan and eliminating paperwork." Assetwise Direct is designed to serve as a point-of-sale tool for brokers, allowing brokers and consumers to complete the loan application and underwriting process in one face-to-face meeting. The system automatically captures data from the borrower's credit report and offers brokers a simple, intuitive interview process to use when meeting with the client. Borrower data can also be downloaded directly from any loan-origination system. The system is integrated with credit report providers or accepts credit information previously pulled by a broker. Each applicants' credit and financial situation is considered, then the system tells the broker which Homecomings Financial product fits each borrower's needs and all the information required by the borrower. The expert feedback provided by Assetwise Direct enables brokers to offer a broader range of mortgage products to their borrowers. "Assetwise Direct offers brokers a broad spectrum of products to present to their customers," said Jacobsohn. "Besides alternative product offerings, the system provides information that helps a broker be smarter about a wider range of products." According to Jacobsohn, the ability to recommend a broad array of products, including conforming, "A", Alt "A", Expanded Criteria, "A-" subprime and second mortgages separates Assetwise Direct from other Internet-based systems. "Assetwise Direct not only provides alternatives and expert feedback to brokers, it does it in a timely, efficient way," he said. Jacobsohn added that Homecomings Financial also developed the back-office processes to seamlessly interface with the front-end, Internet technology. "It's a secure, dependable system with the back-office support to quickly respond to brokers' and borrowers' needs," he said. Homecomings Financial began deployment of Assetwise Direct in January to a small group of brokers on a pilot basis. To date, Homecomings Financial has trained more than 400 brokers on the system. Dan Bettenburg, managing director, E-Commerce and Business Technology at GMAC-RFC, parent company of Homecomings Financial, said, "Assetwise Direct is a mature and broker-tested system that is designed to leverage the strength of Assetwise. This application of Assetwise leverages the flexibility that makes it the leading non-conforming loan-decisioning engine. We're excited to see Assetwise deployed on the Internet at the point of sale." "This is truly a change in the way mortgage brokers do business," Jacobsohn said. "With a traditional paper-based system, brokers often have to send consumers home to retrieve documents. They have to collect credit reports and schedule multiple meetings with borrowers. In the past, the process has been time consuming and tedious for both borrowers and brokers. "Today, Assetwise Direct streamlines the process and allows brokers to securely submit applications online during the first meeting with a borrower," Jacobsohn continued. "Brokers can increase capacity because each transaction takes less time, and consumers experience fewer hassles and fewer delays." The wholesale funding unit of Homecomings Financial is headquartered in Petaluma, Calif. and is licensed in all 50 states. The company is part of GMAC-Residential Funding Corporation (GMAC-RFC), a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors Acceptance Corporation. GMAC-RFC is America's largest non-agency issuer of mortgage-backed securities and a leading warehouse lender. The company leverages its strengths in securitization, lending and investment to offer a broad portfolio of innovative capital solutions. The company is headquartered in Minneapolis and operates in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Japan. http://www.rfc.com