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The Closing Script - Comments

Lots of great discussions about the closing script on Notary Rotary and elsewhere. There's certainly some strong opinions and great points on both sides of this. I think it will be interesting to have this discussion again down the road as we see what transpires. For those who missed the thread on Notary Rotary, here it is:

Closing Script Thread

The Closing Script

There's been a lot of discussion about the proposed HUD closing script. The NNA thinks that the script constitutes UPL (unauthorized practice of law). But I've yet to see a legitimate reason explaining how reading a script word for word can be considered practicing law. The NNA also claims that the signing agent industry is being threatened by this proposal. Again, how is reading a script a threat to our existence?

That said, I think walking into a closing and reading a script, including a line by line, fee by fee comparison of the HUD and GFE (Good Faith Estimate) is impersonal, unprofessional, and probably will cause borrowers to tune out much like most of us do when a telemarketer calls and starts reading a script. Some have even suggested that we read the script over the phone BEFORE the closing. Can you imagine what the companies that hire us for their closings would think of that practice? The script can be download here:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/res/200803/instruc.pdf

I've commented on this in other places, so I'm just going to include some of those comments here:

I think it gets silly when you start reading every line of the HUD/GFE comparison word for word, especially where the figures are identical.

Going over this by phone? Well, maybe your in-house closers can do that, but as an independent signing agent, I know that many of the companies that hire us would feel that this is outside of our scope of duties. I don't think loan officers would appreciate us going over loan terms with their borrowers before we're even at the table. I can imagine the conversation if the terms I tell them over the phone aren't what they were expecting and they call the l.o. and tell them I called them and told them their terms before our appointment (and maybe before the l.o. had a chance to make the call that he/she was going to make to discuss the change). I can kiss that company goodbye. No way would I ever do this over the phone.

it's not the information in the script that I have a problem with. It's vital information and something that I think must be covered with the borrower. It's telling me I have to read it word or word like a sixth grader reading out loud for the class. Anyone that's ever given a speech or made a presentation (and that’s what this is, a presentation) knows you don't write out your presentation word for word. You end up sounding cold and robotic. Don’t give me a script. Give me an outline or a bullet point summary.

"The following is a summary of many important details involving the mortgage loan 123 Main St, Anywhere, U.S.A. Let's compare these important details with the Good Faith Estimate, loan documents, and other disclosures, shall we?" Come on, who talks like that? I don't. So, if instead of that gobbledygook, I say "Here are your loan terms," have I failed the borrower? Am I a bad closer? Instead of saying "read this word for bloody word," allow me to be human. I can cover everything that needs to be covered without having to sound like an infomercial spokesperson.

All The Gnooze You Need To Gnow

Today's Top Three Stories - Including The Fed Rate Cut - From a, ummm, different perspective (warning, mild adult content)....



http://gnooze.com/

As The Crow Flies...Not In These Cities

"According to our system, you're only about 15 minutes away from this appointment."

Not if you live in one of these cites:

America's Most Congested Cities

If You Build It, They Will Come

If only it were that easy. But anyone with a website or blog knows that's not the case. There's a lot of hard work involved in drawing traffic to your site (I'll save that conversation for another time). But once you've done that, you've got to make it as simple as possible for someone who likes your site to come back. It's important to make it easy to bookmark your page or add it to their favorite RSS reader (an RSS feed allows someone to keep up with their favorite sites as they are updated by downloading content to a reader). On my sidebar, I've got two buttons that allow someone to quickly add my blog to their favorites or to many different readers. The buttons were created on the AddThis website. You pick the button style that you like and AddThis generates the HTML code. Then it's as simple as copying and pasting the code into your blog or site.

LendingTree Accuses Former Employees Of Stealing Customer Info

LendingTree has informed its customers that former employees hacked their system and stole customer information from 2006 to 2008. According to the letter sent to LendingTree customers, former employees shared confidential passwords with other lenders, who used the passwords to access LendingTree's customer loan request forms. These forms included personal data such as names, addresses, Social Security numbers, income & employment information. But not to worry, LendingTree says lenders did not use the information to commit identity theft or fraud. The information was only used to market their own mortgage loans to those customers. That makes everyone feel better, right?

Though LendingTree shares personal information with other companies to help consumers find a mortgage company with the best rate, in this case loan applications were viewed by unauthorized lenders who used the information to market their own loan products.

Modest Mouse - Bankrupt On Selling

Alternative Income - Field Inspections

Rebecca Fair has compiled a comprehensive list of field inspection sites. She offers the list for a very nominal fee. I've asked Rebecca to write about it here. Her website is http://floridasnotary.com/fieldinspectorlist.aspx:

With the slow down of the real estate and loan markets, a notary must diversify to continue a successful, profitable Mobile Notary business. With foreclosures on the rise, there is a need for Field Service Inspectors all over the country.

Field Service Inspectors are used to provide on-site property inspection services for lenders, loan servicers and investors. There are many types of property inspections that are needed, most of which enable a mortgage servicer or insurance company to make decisions on their properties with the information received from an inspection. Some of the basic information collected on an inspection would be occupancy status and damages. As a Field Service Inspector, you are responsible for completing basic inspection reports, photographing the property and uploading your report and photos to the hiring companies' website. If you are a licensed Real Estate Agent, you will earn more for BPOs than an unlicensed person completing basic inspections and drive by inspections.

I have compiled a list of over 200 companies that hire independent Field Inspectors and have included links to three more web based lists. The list is easy to use and has hyper links to all of the 200+ companies, making it easy for you to locate and sign up as a vendor with companies that want to hire you. The list includes links to field inspection groups and forums so you have a place to ask the experts and research companies that hire field inspectors.

The list is great for Real Estate Agents, Mobile Notaries and Loan Officers that are looking for other streams of income. You won't get rich quick, but you should be able to earn some extra money without a lot of effort. At least that's been my experience.

E-Sign. The Sign Of The Future?

Let's hope not. I did my first two E-Closings today, and I have to say I was thoroughly underwhelmed. There were about 50 pages that required a hard copy, including title docs, the mortgage, and other notarized documents. Then the note, TIL, RTC, and about 10 other miscellaneous documents were to be e-signed. Hard copies of all documents still had to be printed for the borrower. The whole process of turning on my laptop, logging in, and slowly scrolling through docs and waiting while the system dragged from one page to the next while the borrowers, broker, and I all huddled around a laptop was completely inane. There was absolutely no advantage, no logical reason, no upside whatsoever to performing a signing in this manner. It wasn't quicker, it wasn't easier, it wasn't better for the borrowers. The signings take two to three times longer, it's a logistics nightmare, it's hard for everyone to review documents in that fashion, and there was a definite concern from at least one of the borrowers that the docs online matched their hard copy version.

This idea needs to be buried along with New Coke and the Edsel.

Unsold Inventory Continues To Grow

Unsold homes in Metro Detroit keep piling up (my own home in Livonia has been listed for almost two years). Figures for the end of 2007 reveal an 18.9 month supply of homes, almost doubling the national average (inventory figures represent how long it would take to sell all listed homes based on sales pace). Surprisingly Oakland County, not Wayne County, actually leads the way with a 20.2 month supply. Not so surprisingly, the city of Detroit has a jaw dropping 51.1 month supply.

Short Sales Becoming Prevalent

More and more sellers are turning to short sales as a way to avoid foreclosures. In a short sale, a home owner sells their property for less than the outstanding balance of the loan and the lender agrees to release the lien. The effect of a short sale on a seller's credit report is identical to that of a foreclosure. In addition, a lender has sole discretion whether to pursue a deficiency judgment. Some estimate that short sales now account for 20% of all U.S. home sales.

Eurotrashed

The fallout from the U.S. subprime debacle continues to spread overseas. Swiss bank UBS AG posted first-quarter losses of $12.1 billion, prompting the resignation of the banks Chairman, Marcel Ospel. UBS write-downs (a write-down is a reduction in the book value of an asset that's considered overvalued compared to market) have reached $40 billion in the past nine months, larger than any bank. Germany's largest bank, Deutsche Bank AG, also announced $4 billion in write-downs.

Bad News Is Always Good News For Someone Else

Foreclosed homes have been bad news for most of us. But not for investors looking to snatch up homes on the cheap.

Top 10 best cities to buy foreclosed homes:

Charlotte
Raleigh
Nashville
Oklahoma City
San Antonio
Albuquerque
Knoxville
Seattle
Indianapolis
Washington


Foreclosure categories - from MSN

Another Record Drop In Home Prices

Almost 11% in January. Worst hit cities include Las Vegas, Miami, Phoenix, San Diego, and what a surprise, Detroit. Anyone interested in buying the Manoogian Mansion (home of our Detroit mayor) for cheap? I hear it might be available soon.

Former Countrywide Execs Start New Mortgage Firm

Isn't this sort of like cigarette companies that get you hooked on nicotine and then sell you the patch? Former Countrywide executives, including the company's former president, have started a new company called PennyMac aimed at helping borrowers restructure loans so they can avoid foreclosure and maintain their payments. My guess: they've probably got some great leads from their past customer list.

Happy Easter