Events

 Chicago, Illinois (July 19)

Many conferences claim to be unique, but the Property Insurance and Restoration Conference (PIRC) really is. Designed to allow interaction from all members of the audience, the conference offers topic-led discussions from all segments of the property restoration industry. Topics for discussion at this year’s PIRC included industry image, finding and promoting new talent, new technologies, and legislative issues facing the industry. All segments of the industry were represented, with participation from restoration companies of all sizes, as well as insurance executives, TPA representatives, vendors and other key players in the industry. Given our commitment to attending relevant events in our industry, Aspen Grove Solutions was represented at the conference and found it a valuable experience.

What Happened at the Property Insurance and Restoration Conference?

Those who attended and participated in PIRC got the opportunity to have their voice heard on issues that matter to the industry. This provided the perfect chance to network with like-minded individuals and to discuss problems and possible solutions with other industry professionals.

More details about the event

PIRC took place from 9AM to 5PM on Thursday, July 19, at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Chicago – Wood Dale.

August 16, 2018 | 2:00 p.m. (CST)

Aspen Grove Solutions President Edmond Buckley hosted a fascinating webinar for the American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC) on the role of diversity in the business supply chain. This free event was open to everyone who registered in advance.

The AMDC Webinar Series

The AMDC webinar series is designed to give mortgage industry professionals and diversity practitioners the practical education they need to advance their knowledge on topics associated with diversity and inclusion. Edmond Buckley’s presentation dealt with the benefits organizations gain when they engage in a diverse supply-chain, the best ways to promote diversity in your own supply chain, and the range of certifications available for minority-owned businesses to identify themselves.

Other Webinars in the Series

Edmond Buckley is one of a panel of experts that the AMDC has assembled to cover issues relating to diversity and inclusion (D&I) in the mortgage industry and related businesses. Other webinars feature the following industry leaders and topics:

• Bradley J. Osborne handles foreclosure, ejectment and credit card litigation for the Pennsylvania law firm Richard M. Squire & Associates, LLC. His webinar focuses on D&I regulation.
• Laudan Properties’ Clint Welser (who is also board president for Fair Housing Services in Ohio) will discuss certification.
• Kirk Willison, senior government affairs and corporate social responsibility officer for Altisource, will focus on a supply chain pilot program for his webinar
• Altisource’s director of vendor oversight, Francisco Reyes, will present a webinar on measuring diversity spend

Who Is the American Mortgage Diversity Council?

Aspen Grove Solutions is proud to be an active member of the AMDC, which aims to create a diverse and inclusive mortgage industry for everybody. It offers a platform for mortgage industry leaders to collaborate for the progression of diversity and inclusion dialogue. The organization fosters discussion and encourages action through active participation with mortgage lenders, servicers, and related service providers. The council regularly engages with a range of federal agencies in relation to policies and procedures that affect diversity and inclusion across the mortgage industry.

New York, NY (May 20-23)
Central concerns for lenders attending MBA’s National Secondary Market Conference & Expo 2018 in New York City included increasing interest rates, falling applications, and smaller margins. With mortgage originations continuing to plunge, many participants were hoping to find the secret to originating loans more efficiently and cost-effectively. The conference represented another productive event for Aspen Grove Solutions.

Originations on the Decline

MBA chief economist Mike Fratantoni warned that originations are trending negatively. He pointed to the latest MBA Mortgage Performance Report, which highlighted the adverse effects that regulation, additional fixed costs, fierce competition, and a move from refinancing to purchase are having on mortgage profits. Fratantoni noted that overcapacity and high expenses led to losses at mortgage banks during the first quarter, for the first time since the same period of 2014, and he also pointed out that many independent mortgage banks are considering abandoning servicing.

Digital Mortgages

Many mortgage originators are pinning their hopes on digital mortgage processes. According to Michael Drayne, senior vice president of issuer and portfolio management, Ginnie Mae will release a plan in June that will address the role of digital mortgages at the agency.

Ginnie Mae securitizes production for the Federal Housing Administration, Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Service, and all of these agencies discussed planned technology upgrades designed to help lenders cut costs. To underline the interest in digitization, the final general session at MBA’s National Secondary Market & Expo 2018 was called “Securitizing the Digital Mortgage.”

Non-QM (Qualified Mortgage) Loans

A key aspect of the conference was a marked interest in non-QM (Qualified Mortgage) loans. With market conditions becoming more difficult, it is becoming harder to find easy loans where borrowers meet qualified mortgage standards. This means that the future of the mortgage industry is likely to depend on atypical borrowers, who may not meet conventional lending criteria but are a good risk for the appropriate product. Partly because of this, the non-QM market is forecast to increase by 400% in the next year. Panelists discussed non-conforming loan types, such as bank statement loans and condo loans, although several cautioned against likening non-QM to subprime. They also noted that underwriting non-QM loans can be challenging, especially because they have limited potential for automation.

Conclusion

Attendees left MBA’s National Secondary Market Conference & Expo 2018 with a keen sense of the demands facing them in the lending market. There may be some good news for the industry in relation to the passage of Dodd-Frank reforms that relax the rules restricting thousands of small and medium-sized banks, but the general outlook for mortgage lending is challenging.

The Joule Hotel, Dallas, Texas (May 2, 2018)

The third annual American Mortgage Diversity Council Spring Member Meeting brought together leading executives from across the United States to promote the agenda of diversity and inclusion in the U.S. residential mortgage industry. Aspen Grove Solutions president, Edmond Buckley, participated in a lunchtime session on subcommittee and Affinity Group updates. Key speakers on the day included Dr. Antonio R. Flores, president and CEO of the Hispanic Colleges and Universities (HACU). Dr. Flores is among the 400+ CEOs in the CEO ACTION for Diversity and Inclusion Pledge, the primary CEO-driven business drive to promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

The event was organized exclusively for members of the American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC), who discussed the most high-profile issues relating to diversity and inclusion that affect the mortgage industry. The council is dedicated to promoting solutions that support a wide variety of diversity initiatives. Issues it faces include supply-chain diversity and the challenges confronting minority, LGBT, and women-owned businesses.

You can see the agenda for this event here.

Detroit, MI (April 15-18)
MBA’s Technology Solutions Conference & Expo 2018 was the year’s leading industry trade show dedicated to the latest technology solutions. Attendees got to network with key mortgage technology experts and vendors, plan for the future, and learn about the latest technologies to help them develop their businesses. This is the essential industry event for anyone who wants to find out about the problems facing all sectors of the industry and the solutions that technology has created to address them.

A panel discussion on the future of the industry included Dominick Marchetti, chief technology officer at loanDepot; Bill Emerson, vice chairman of Rock Holdings; Ben Sizemore, senior vice president of mortgage transformation at Pentagon Federal Credit Union; and Brian Stoffers, global president, debt and structured finance at CBRE. With different scales, scopes, and client bases, these executives’ companies are some of the most successful in the industry. Based on the views put forward during discussions, they see immense potential in their employees and customers. From a servicing perspective, it was generally agreed that technology offers huge opportunities to optimize automation and adopt a more proactive approach to consumers.