Independent Banker - April 2019 - 23

That means that if you want to capture this
growing group of homebuyers, your community
bank needs to have some kind of digital mortgage
strategy-and if you don't, the time to start
is now.
application. We're having a lot of success with
that, especially on the weekends. "
What do they want?
As deRitis suggests, the one thing nearly every
mortgage shopper wants-even older shoppers-
is the ability to search online for basic mortgage
rates and information. According to a 2018 study
by mortgage software corporation Ellie Mae, 92
percent of people who bought homes within the
previous year did research online before reaching
out to a lender.
Those borrowers who used the web before contacting
the lender researched a variety of topics,
" We've found that
more and more of our
customer base wants to
apply online. "
-Tim McCoy, Anderson Brothers Bank
but the three most important issues to them,
according to the Ellie Mae study, were finding
the best rate (72 percent of borrowers searched
for that information), identifying how much
they could qualify for (59 percent) and finding a
trusted lender (48 percent).
But many borrowers take the process further
than just research. The Ellie Mae study found
that 43 percent of borrowers completed their
mortgage application online. Those are the borrowers
Anderson Brothers Bank was trying to
reach when it launched its online mortgage application
process a year ago.
" We've found that more and more of our
customer base wants to apply online, " says
Tim McCoy, vice president of mortgage lending
for the $657 million-asset community bank in
Mullins, S.C. " This is especially true when we
direct them there, which we do a lot. If they call
us and say they don't have time to come in to fill
out an application, we direct them to the online
Quick stat
92%
of homebuyers
did research
online before
contacting a
lender
Source: 2018 Ellie Mae
study
Anderson Brothers Bank is using an online
mortgage package called MortgageBot from fintech
provider Finastra. McCoy notes that having
customers complete the application online not
only pleases the customers-who don't need to
leave home to start the process-but also the
community bank.
" It saves the loan officer time when the customer
fills out the application online, " McCoy
says. " It takes 15 to 30 minutes to take a full
application in person. "
Customers applying for a mortgage at Anderson
Brothers Bank can also upload financial
documents via the web, and in many cases, they
can sign disclosures online with DocuSign.
" DocuSign is a tremendous help, " McCoy says.
" We get a lot of people moving here from out of
state, and, in the past, we were FedExing the initial
disclosures for signatures, and they would
FedEx them back. It would take maybe a week.
Now there are times when 10 minutes later,
they've received and signed the documents.
" You can imagine how much that speeds up
the process. "
Advanced digital steps
Attracting homebuyers with a solid website and
online application is just the beginning of what
can be done online.
Customers of $1.4 billion-asset Leader Bank
in Boston can apply for loans online and through
a mobile app, and then other features kick in,
explains Jay Tuli, executive vice president.
" The loan officer can create a preapproval
letter for the borrower through a mobile app, "
he says. " As the loan starts moving through the
process, the borrower gets automated email
notifications about each step-you are in processing,
now underwriting, now approved, now
the appraisal is coming, now it's in closing. We
are sending out real-time communications as we
move through those steps to the buyer and the
Realtor, so they're in the loop. "
What the customer doesn't see is even more
impressive. For many borrowers, the paperwork
is accelerated by Fannie Mae's Day 1 Certainty
program, which verifies income, employment
and assets automatically. It's the same with
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Independent Banker - April 2019

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