Reverse mortgages are a highly variable and situation-dependent transaction, with start-to-close times of anywhere from 30 days to several months. Many customers find themselves bewildered at the complexity of the paperwork involved, leading to negative associations with the practice in general — and, perhaps unfairly, with your brand as a lender. Thankfully, there are a few tactics that can help you provide a clean, streamlined experience to your reverse mortgage customers, saving time and effort for everyone involved:
Trustworthy Referrals
A reverse mortgage application cannot become active until the prospective buyer has met with a third-party financial counselor who will advise them on their options and best path forward. Making sure that applicants are aware of this requirement and providing them with resources on where to find a good counselor will help prevent delays from the very start. Make sure, however, that the referral is above board: it’s best to provide customers with a list of names and timeframes to choose from, instead of pointing them to one individual.
Documentation Efficiency
The paperwork and documentation required by any mortgage transaction is significant, and reverse models are no exception. An exhaustive record of any existing deeds, liens and bank statements must be fully present and checked over before the application can even begin. Make sure to clearly communicate this to the applicant at their first appointment: if they deliver a packet that’s missing a key piece of documentation, it can set the transaction back by weeks. Consider putting together a standard take-home checklist that breaks down each and every record the initial submission should include.
Clear Communication
Extant paperwork is just the first piece of the puzzle. Over the course of the evaluation and approval process, supporting documents not in the initial requirements can come into play. For example, the customer may have had their house appraised prior to applying for a reverse mortgage and been given a valuation contingent on renovation work not actually done at the time of the appraisal. To accept the stated value, you may need documentation from the contractor stating that the work was completed to specification. Keep closely in touch with the applicant throughout the process, contacting them as soon as the issue comes up so they can respond expediently.
Lakeside Title Company: Your Partner for Maryland Title Insurance & Closing Services
Lakeside Title Company’s corporate location is located in Columbia, Maryland. Our title insurance experts serve builders, lenders, and realtors in Maryland, Washington D.C., Northern Virginia, and Southern Pennsylvania. We close over 4,000 transactions a year. Please visit our homepage today to learn more about our services and to become a client.
Legal Questions?
If you have a question for an attorney, please contact Lakeside Title Company’s affiliated Law Firm, Deardorff, Rath & Pichon, LLC.
