Phil Grossfield's Blog

and A Little Extra:  With the holidays the timelines for lending has gotten a bit crazy…and extended.  Are your docs expiring at the time of CTC?  Interbank issues a refi loan decision in about 10 business days which is 15-18 calendar days.  Depending on when and what documents you upload will in large part determine the remainder of the process.  Be proactive…I know you know this already but I have to say it because of what I see…get us expiring documentation before we have to ask.  More importantly, manage your client’s expectations!  I know you experience frustration too, but nothing frustrates me more than when I hear an LO say “I’m afraid to go back to the borrower and ask.”  Really?  Who trained you?  Did you explain at the onset that this is perhaps the most challenging lending environment ever?  Did you explain lenders must deal with unnecessary government intervention and compliance threats?  Did you explain the lender will be requiring updated documents and other items during the process?  For the love of all things holy in this land we call earth…that’s your job, is it not?  This way the borrower won’t get too frustrated when you have to go back to them.  If you are not proactive then Audit will catch it and you will find yourself scrambling for updated documentation in order to get CTC and docs out.  My best LOs/Processors do not wait for Interbank to tell them what is expired.  Manage expectations and be proactive.  Everyone knows the accepted age for loan documents:

• Paystubs must not be older than 90 days at funding and must be dated no more than 30 days from the loan application.  So when we underwrite the paystub cannot be more than 30 days old, but when the loan funds it cannot be more than 90 days old.  For example, if the Note date is 12/1, then paystub cannot be older than 9/1, but if we issued a lending approval on 11/15, then it can’t be older than 10/15.  Oh, and by the way, stubs must include the employer name, borrower name, and YTD earnings.
• Bank Statements must not be older than 90 days at funding and must be dated no more than 45 days from the application date.  While we’re on the subject, we need all pages and any large deposits ≥25% of the monthly gross income must be sourced and documented.
• The Credit Report cannot exceed 90 days at time of closing (which is the date on the Note).  If it is going to expire for sure then email me and I can try and get the DO released so you can get it updated.  FYI, when updating the credit report, the old case file must be used or the findings will go from 8.3 to 9.0 resulting in much more restrictive underwriting and appraisal requirements.
• The Appraisal cannot exceed 90 days at time of closing.  I have been successful in getting an extra week on occasion but no more, and a recert is possible if it expires.

My Market Watch:  Rates came out slightly worse than yesterday at the end of the day and bonds are holding steady at the moment.  I’ll be watching today to see if there is any movement and do my best to give you a heads up if I see volatility….  My Disclaimer

My Schedule: Today I have a couple of appointments and then I’m going to the pre-launch of The Hobbit tonight.  So excited!  J