The Funding Source opened in Syracuse, New York, in 1996 as a state-approved mortgage broker. Five years later, The Funding Source of Syracuse received its approval from the New York State Department of Banking to become a mortgage banker.
Both a mortgage broker and a mortgage banker help borrowers to secure the funds that they need to purchase property. The difference between the two lies in the way that each sources a loan and arranges for its dispersal to the customer.
Rather than providing financing directly, a mortgage broker serves as an intermediary between a borrower and a lender or a bank. The broker is able to shop for different rates and packages in order to provide choice to the customer.
A mortgage banker, by contrast, provides financing on a retail basis directly to the customer. The banker gathers all appropriate information about the property and the customer, then uses that information to select loans for which that customer would qualify. The banker can only offer in-house products but does not charge a commission or broker fee. As a result, a banker can often provide the borrower with a comparatively lower rate.
The Funding Source Syracuse
Showing posts with label Syracuse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Syracuse. Show all posts
Friday, May 22, 2015
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Mortgage Fraud advise from Fannie Mae
In January of 2015, Fannie Mae came out with some advise on how to avoid mortgage fraud as you prepare to process, underwrite and close your borrower's mortgage application.
Some of those pointers include
** Liabilities. The applicant may have a second, undisclosed mortgage or may have inaccurately reported debt. The most obvious detective step is to compare the application to the credit report; however, all documents in the loan file should be considered. A description for a payroll deduction noted on a paystub could signal a loan from the applicant’s employer, or a dependent on tax returns could be a clue that the applicant has a child support obligation. The lender should get clarification on any discrepancies, and should require evidence of explanations that claim that obligations have been paid in full or are not the responsibility of the applicant.
Clearly, undisclosed debts is a concern. However, in most cases consumers who are looking to rip off a mortgage bank, banker or broker are not going to have undisclosed debts. They want to have the least amount of scrutiny and questions and are savvy enough regarding the process to insure they disclose debts that seem accurate.
In most cases, you'll find borrowers with say a co-signed student loan that they did not list. Or, maybe they co-own a family cottage that they did not list because it's just a cottage.
Be careful and don't come down too hard unless it is blatant and clear that the non-disclosure was egregious and calculated
Credit. Beware of “credit cleaning.” An applicant could receive his credit report before the loan process begins and falsify credit history by frivolously disputing derogatory credit. Disputed items can be temporarily removed from the credit report during that process, and could leave the mortgage company unaware of derogatory credit. In another scenario, a disreputable player could falsify the credit report. If the underwriter has any concerns, he or she should consider requesting another report and comparing the two reports. Watch for red flags such as an accurate accounting for debts and balances on the initial application, which might signal that the applicant studied the credit report prior to completing the application. In addition, review the entire loan file for other signs that the borrower has had credit trouble – for instance, are there delinquent taxes reported on title, yet the borrower appears to have made timely revolving debt payments?
Most borrowers are told to pull their credit and review it for inaccurate information. However, make it a practice that if a borrower has disputed a credit item it remains counted against them until the creditor responds. That was our policy and is prudent. It may seem unfair to the consumer, but the official record is the official record until amended. If the borrower can provide you proof, for example, that they paid off say a collection account - by all means provide that information to the credit reporting agency and wait for them to research it and update the credit. Till then, don't close that loan until all credit stands or is removed with validity.
Credit agencies will set up alerts for a borrower in process - and those alerts include application for new credit during the process or other alerts to let you know something has changed. Make sure your lender is using this service and you're monitoring the credit as it progresses.
Always pull a refresh 48 hours before closing. And, always, get an update on mortgage payments for existing mortgage before closing.
Assets. Unethical parties could be motivated to cause the loan file to reflect that the applicant has more money than he actually has – especially if the applicant has insufficient assets to cover the minimum required investment.
Do the bank statements (if applicable) look real? Even if they appear to be real, they could be doctored. Scanning and photo shop technologies have greatly assisted would-be fraud perpetrators; however, many fail to ensure the mathematical accuracy of falsified statements’ debits and credits, or fail to match aspects of the bank’s statement formatting.
The savvy lender should review the complete bank statement and not just the ending balance. The bank statements frequently reflect much information about the applicant.
If something doesn’t “add up," the lender can check the bank’s website to see what its statements look like; validate the balance with the depository; and/or ask for an additional statement. Just because the minimum documentation requirements have been met, there is nothing preventing prudent lenders from gathering additional documentation if deemed necessary to eliminate concerns.
You can not argue here with this. While it is not required for Underwriters or processors to pull out a calculator and balance a borrowers' submitted bank statement - typically two or three months worth of consecutive bank statements per account - and this is time consuming when you have so much to do on so many files....
.....it can not be stressed enough that mortgage fraudster use fake bank statements that are life like and real. And, they are human and make mathematical mistakes.
So do yourself a favor. Add and subtract all deposits and withdrawals. Seriously!
Employment and income. Employment and income are sometimes misrepresented to obtain a higher mortgage than an applicant is qualified to receive; or, in the case of a straw buyer, employment and income could be completely manufactured. When reviewing paystubs, W-2s or tax returns, the professional should look beyond the bottom-line income number. Conduct a more thorough review to ensure that the documentation makes sense and doesn’t contain unanswered questions: payroll deductions are accurate, calculations net, and the picture painted by these documents aligns with the application and other documents in the file. For instance, does an application dated April 2 claim $100,000 in savings and salaried employment; yet the tax return has no interest or dividend income, and includes Schedule C income?
This is a big one guys. Do NOT use the supporting docs submitted by the borrower on face value. Run a Lexus-Nexus report on the borrower, his or her employer. Do a written VOE and a verbal VOE. Pull your 4506 Transcripts. If they did NOT file, get a letter from the tax preparer.
And be aware. Even with those steps, they can still commit fraud.
Some of those pointers include
** Liabilities. The applicant may have a second, undisclosed mortgage or may have inaccurately reported debt. The most obvious detective step is to compare the application to the credit report; however, all documents in the loan file should be considered. A description for a payroll deduction noted on a paystub could signal a loan from the applicant’s employer, or a dependent on tax returns could be a clue that the applicant has a child support obligation. The lender should get clarification on any discrepancies, and should require evidence of explanations that claim that obligations have been paid in full or are not the responsibility of the applicant.
Clearly, undisclosed debts is a concern. However, in most cases consumers who are looking to rip off a mortgage bank, banker or broker are not going to have undisclosed debts. They want to have the least amount of scrutiny and questions and are savvy enough regarding the process to insure they disclose debts that seem accurate.
In most cases, you'll find borrowers with say a co-signed student loan that they did not list. Or, maybe they co-own a family cottage that they did not list because it's just a cottage.
Be careful and don't come down too hard unless it is blatant and clear that the non-disclosure was egregious and calculated
Credit. Beware of “credit cleaning.” An applicant could receive his credit report before the loan process begins and falsify credit history by frivolously disputing derogatory credit. Disputed items can be temporarily removed from the credit report during that process, and could leave the mortgage company unaware of derogatory credit. In another scenario, a disreputable player could falsify the credit report. If the underwriter has any concerns, he or she should consider requesting another report and comparing the two reports. Watch for red flags such as an accurate accounting for debts and balances on the initial application, which might signal that the applicant studied the credit report prior to completing the application. In addition, review the entire loan file for other signs that the borrower has had credit trouble – for instance, are there delinquent taxes reported on title, yet the borrower appears to have made timely revolving debt payments?
Most borrowers are told to pull their credit and review it for inaccurate information. However, make it a practice that if a borrower has disputed a credit item it remains counted against them until the creditor responds. That was our policy and is prudent. It may seem unfair to the consumer, but the official record is the official record until amended. If the borrower can provide you proof, for example, that they paid off say a collection account - by all means provide that information to the credit reporting agency and wait for them to research it and update the credit. Till then, don't close that loan until all credit stands or is removed with validity.
Credit agencies will set up alerts for a borrower in process - and those alerts include application for new credit during the process or other alerts to let you know something has changed. Make sure your lender is using this service and you're monitoring the credit as it progresses.
Always pull a refresh 48 hours before closing. And, always, get an update on mortgage payments for existing mortgage before closing.
Assets. Unethical parties could be motivated to cause the loan file to reflect that the applicant has more money than he actually has – especially if the applicant has insufficient assets to cover the minimum required investment.
Do the bank statements (if applicable) look real? Even if they appear to be real, they could be doctored. Scanning and photo shop technologies have greatly assisted would-be fraud perpetrators; however, many fail to ensure the mathematical accuracy of falsified statements’ debits and credits, or fail to match aspects of the bank’s statement formatting.
The savvy lender should review the complete bank statement and not just the ending balance. The bank statements frequently reflect much information about the applicant.
If something doesn’t “add up," the lender can check the bank’s website to see what its statements look like; validate the balance with the depository; and/or ask for an additional statement. Just because the minimum documentation requirements have been met, there is nothing preventing prudent lenders from gathering additional documentation if deemed necessary to eliminate concerns.
You can not argue here with this. While it is not required for Underwriters or processors to pull out a calculator and balance a borrowers' submitted bank statement - typically two or three months worth of consecutive bank statements per account - and this is time consuming when you have so much to do on so many files....
.....it can not be stressed enough that mortgage fraudster use fake bank statements that are life like and real. And, they are human and make mathematical mistakes.
So do yourself a favor. Add and subtract all deposits and withdrawals. Seriously!
Employment and income. Employment and income are sometimes misrepresented to obtain a higher mortgage than an applicant is qualified to receive; or, in the case of a straw buyer, employment and income could be completely manufactured. When reviewing paystubs, W-2s or tax returns, the professional should look beyond the bottom-line income number. Conduct a more thorough review to ensure that the documentation makes sense and doesn’t contain unanswered questions: payroll deductions are accurate, calculations net, and the picture painted by these documents aligns with the application and other documents in the file. For instance, does an application dated April 2 claim $100,000 in savings and salaried employment; yet the tax return has no interest or dividend income, and includes Schedule C income?
This is a big one guys. Do NOT use the supporting docs submitted by the borrower on face value. Run a Lexus-Nexus report on the borrower, his or her employer. Do a written VOE and a verbal VOE. Pull your 4506 Transcripts. If they did NOT file, get a letter from the tax preparer.
And be aware. Even with those steps, they can still commit fraud.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Get an FHA loan for less?
Julian Castro, the current Sec for the US Dept of HUD, testified before the Committee on Financial Services on Wednesday, February 11, 2015 regarding the reduction of the Mortgage Insurance Premium
Before your eyes glaze -this is important. A reduction in the premium has huge benefit to everyday people buying a home and financing it with an FHA loan. About 5-years ago, HUD raised that premium and that cost borrowers a significantly higher amount to close their loans - money out of their pocket to HUD. And, each month, their monthly payment included hefty monthly premiums that went to HUD.
Castro is seeking to reduce this amount for two reason. 1. The high premium is forcing borrowers to look at big banks offering 3% down payment mortgages with lower insurance. 2. By reducing the premium and by offering a truce with banks who refuse to do FHA loans (by not forcing them to buy back FHA loans for immaterial defects), Castro is hoping that more people will apply for and get an FHA loan.
This is important to HUD and frankly to the US. First, HUD has seen a large drop in FHA loans for the reasons cited above. Consumers don't want to pay and banks don't trust FHA to punt loans back to them for small defects that don't affect the material soundness and quality of underwriting a borrower.
But, FHA loans provide borrowers who can't get a 3% down loan at a bank with the ability to get a mortgage. Those much talked about low down payment loans at major banks and bankers come with tougher credit, employment and asset requirements than an FHA loan
Since the 1930's FHA has played an important role in housing - providing loans to people who otherwise would not get one. So, HUD is an important player in the US economy.
The US Congress cares about this reduction because not so long ago FHA and HUD ran out of money as the foreclosures went through the roof. Castro stated that in response to this HUD increased the insurance amount from borrowers and toughened underwriting which brought in a 21 billion improvement to the insurance fund.
HUD remains under the limit required to have in reserve - a violation that a regulatory like HUD would not tolerate in a lender. Congresspersons grilled HUD about this very fact in light of the reduction of the insurance premium, which goes to increase their reserves.
Friday, September 26, 2014
About The Funding Source Syracuse
Based in Syracuse, New York, The Funding Source offers mortgage solutions to clients in New York, Pennsylvania, MO and North Carolina. An equal housing lender, it is a licensed mortgage banker for all four states. Visitors to tfsny.com can learn about The Funding Source Syracuse.
Part of the reason behind The Funding Source's ongoing success is its nearly 20 years of history. Founded in June 1996 by former bank employee Philip LaTessa, it was developed to provide homeowners with a user-friendly way to obtain mortgage financing. From its East Syracuse headquarters, the company initially placed loans through third-party lenders before becoming a fully licensed mortgage banker in New York State in 2001. Over the next several years, The Funding Source received Designated Underwriter status with the Federal Housing Administration, the Department of Veteran Affairs, and the US Department of Agriculture. Additionally, it expanded by buying other companies, opening new branches in new markets and recruiting experience loan officers and it added ancillary services through its sister companies; The Greatwood Companies, and a Weichert, First Residential Group, a real estate company
Part of the reason behind The Funding Source's ongoing success is its nearly 20 years of history. Founded in June 1996 by former bank employee Philip LaTessa, it was developed to provide homeowners with a user-friendly way to obtain mortgage financing. From its East Syracuse headquarters, the company initially placed loans through third-party lenders before becoming a fully licensed mortgage banker in New York State in 2001. Over the next several years, The Funding Source received Designated Underwriter status with the Federal Housing Administration, the Department of Veteran Affairs, and the US Department of Agriculture. Additionally, it expanded by buying other companies, opening new branches in new markets and recruiting experience loan officers and it added ancillary services through its sister companies; The Greatwood Companies, and a Weichert, First Residential Group, a real estate company
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