TMPs, Transaction Management Platforms for Real Estate, are all over the map. Some do this, some do that, but something's missing when it comes to applying a TMP in the real world . . . participation.
Before you declare that to be an only- too-obvious statement, I mean to say that some of the players in a real estate transaction may have more of an inclination to participate in a TMP than others. What does this mean?
It means that some of the real estate partners are eager to take part in a platform, while others may loathe it. Why? TMPs, as the acronym implies, monitor the transaction for all to see. While that's not really a big deal, these systems usually mean someone has to stop what they're doing, log on somewhere and manually update the file. Not very earthshattering if the affiliate only updates the transaction once or maybe twice during a typical escrow period. But if the affiliate is a lender then there may be eight to ten different stages that need to be updated, not just once, but several times during the transaction.
Allow me to do a little math here*. Common TMPs on the market today may have different action items that require attention from the lender. Borrower Applied for mortgage? Yes. Borrower Approved? No. Appraisal ordered? Yes. Appraisal received? No. Title ordered? Yes. Title received? No. Credit Report ordered? Yes. Credit Report received? Yes. Survey ordered? Yes. Survey Received? No. Loan in Underwriting? No. Escrow Opened? Yes. Loan Conditions met? No. Flood Certificate ordered? Yes. Flood Certificate received? Yes. Insurance information ordered? Yes. Insurance information received? No. Get it? Yes, David, I get it.
That's typically just the first day's worth of updates. Multiply these tasks by a factor of twelve, that being an average number of loan closings per loan officer each month. Multiply that by six for the number of loan officers per mortgage company. Each and every time something needs to be updated on the file, the appraisal came in for example, the lender stops in their tracks, logs onto a TMP, clicks "Yes, the appraisal has been received" and logs off, going back to processing loans. It makes a person wonder, "why doesn't someone just pick up the phone and tell the real estate agent that the appraisal has been received and the Survey has been ordered?"
Good question. Why don't people do it the old-fashioned way and just call or email someone? They do. In fact, the very reason that TMPs are so cumbersome for the mortgage industry is the reason they're so underutilized. Lenders may in fact have more to update in a typical transaction than any other single party. And unless lenders can find an easy way to update a third party TMP then these programs have quite a ways to go.
*The answer to my math question? 720.
Published: November 8, 2002
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