Guide For Loan Officers
System Overview
The mortgage automation dashboard is your centralized platform for managing all aspects of the loan process. This guide provides comprehensive information about the system's features, common workflows, and solutions to frequently encountered scenarios.
Key Features at a Glance
Core Functions
My Pipeline: Manage and track all your active loans
Leads Management: Handle potential borrower information
Partner Coordination: Work with realtors and other partners
Quick Pricing: Generate loan pricing scenarios
Property Listings: Track and manage property information
Application Options
Full Application
Prequalification
Short Application
Table of Contents
FAQ’s
1. Dashboard Overview
As a Loan Officer, the dashboard is the first thing you see upon logging in. It serves as the hub for managing your pipeline, leads, partners, and pricing tools. The design is straightforward, with icons and quick access points for each section. This layout helps streamline your daily tasks and provides quick access to essential functions.
2. Key Features of the Dashboard
2.1. My Pipeline: View and Manage Loans
Purpose: The "My Pipeline" feature serves as the central hub for tracking all loan applications assigned to you. It provides a comprehensive view of loan statuses and allows you to take necessary actions on each loan.
Detailed Functionality:
Loan Overview: Upon accessing "My Pipeline," you will see a list of all active loans. The list includes essential details such as loan number, loan amount, borrower name(s), address, application date, and status.
Impersonate Borrower: You can select and impersonate a borrower from the list to access detailed information and manage specific tasks related to their loan application.
Detailed Loan View: Once impersonating a borrower, you can access a detailed page displaying borrower information (e.g., contact details, address, loan number) and available actions, including tasks that need to be completed or reviewed.
Loan Management: For each loan, you can open the loan details, review document submissions, send co-borrower invites, and manage tasks. Additional tools like loan calculators and quick pricers are available to assist in reviewing or calculating loan terms.
2.2. Leads: Manage and Track Leads
Purpose: The "Leads" section serves as the central hub for managing potential borrowers who have shown interest in loan products but have not yet completed a loan application.
Functionality Overview:
Lead Details:
Each lead is listed with essential contact information such as First Name, Last Name, Phone Number, Email, and Loan Status (e.g., New, Prequalified).
The platform allows you to review a lead’s interaction history, making it easier to determine the appropriate next steps in converting the lead into a loan application.
Lead Assignment:
Leads can be assigned to specific loan officers, either by the user or a system administrator. This ensures that each lead receives timely follow-up from a designated officer, facilitating efficient lead management.
Lead Tracking:
The system helps track each lead's position in the loan pipeline (e.g., New, Awaiting Follow-up, Prequalified, Moved to Full Application). This functionality allows users to focus on converting high priority leads into applications and avoid leads slipping through the cracks.
Custom Lead Fields:
The platform is customizable, allowing organizations to add specific criteria for capturing leads. This could include fields such as credit scores, income levels, or other details relevant to the borrower, helping to streamline the loan qualification process.
Adding a New Lead:
Click the “Add Lead” button located in the upper-right corner of the Leads page.
A form will appear where you can enter the lead’s details:
Client Information: First Name, Last Name, Address, Email, etc.
Co-Client Information: If applicable, fill in the co-borrower details.
Loan Officer: Select the loan officer who will be responsible for managing this lead.
After entering the necessary details, click "Save Lead" or "Create Loan" to add the lead to your pipeline.
Downloading Leads Data:
To export the leads, click the Download Icon (located next to the "Add Lead" button in the upper-right corner of the Leads page).
This will generate a downloadable Excel (.xlsx) file containing all the lead data currently displayed in your system. This file will include fields such as First Name, Last Name, Phone Number, Email, Status, Form Type, and more.
This feature is particularly useful for performing further data analysis or sharing lead data across departments.
2.3. Partners: Manage and Track Partners
Purpose: The "Partners" section is designed to facilitate the management of relationships with external stakeholders such as brokers, real estate agents, and other key collaborators involved in the loan process.
Functionality Overview:
Partner Management:
Easily view and manage all external partners, including real estate agents and brokers. Each partner entry includes essential contact details such as:
Company: The organization they represent.
Name: First and last names of the partner.
Phone: Their contact number.
Email: Their email address.
Role: The role they play (e.g., Realtor, Broker).
Created Date: The date the partner was added to the system.
Partner Interaction Tracking:
The system allows you to see which partners are linked to specific loans, providing a clear view of which collaborators are involved in different transactions. This helps in tracking contributions, keeping communication organized, and managing the relationships between loan officers and partners effectively.
Collaboration Management:
By managing your partners effectively, the system ensures that communication with external collaborators remains smooth, enhancing the experience for both clients and loan officers. Whether for a Realtor, broker, or another external party, this section centralizes and simplifies partner relationships.
Downloading Partner Data:
To download the list of partners, click the Download Icon located at the top-right of the Partners page.
This will export the data into an Excel (.xlsx) file that includes partner information such as Company, Name, Phone, Email, and Role. The download function helps streamline data sharing and further analysis
2.4. Quick Pricer: Price a Loan
Purpose: The "Quick Pricer" feature allows you to quickly generate loan pricing scenarios based on basic loan parameters, making it easier to provide potential borrowers with estimates.
Detailed Functionality: Loan Information Input: The interface provides fields to input essential loan details:
Loan Purpose (dropdown selection)
Property Value
Loan Amount
Zip Code
State (dropdown selection)
City
County
Get Your Rate: There's a prominent "Get Your Rate" button at the top of the form, which likely generates the pricing estimate based on the information entered. o User-Friendly Interface: The clean, simple layout makes it easy for users to input the necessary information quickly. Guidance: The interface includes the instruction "Use the form to create a pricing scenario," helping users understand how to use the tool.
Additional Notes: The Quick Pricer appears to be part of a larger system, as evidenced by the sidebar menu which includes other features like Dashboard, My Pipeline, Leads, Partners, Listings, and various application types. The system recognizes the user, as indicated by the "welcome back" message in the top right corner.
2.5. Listings: View, Manage and Add Property Listings
Purpose: The "Listings" section enables you to view, manage, and add properties associated with active loans, ensuring accurate property details are tied to each borrower’s loan.
Detailed Functionality:
View and Manage Listings: Easily review properties linked to active loan applications. You can check the sale price, active date, expiration date, and associated partner for each listing, helping ensure accurate real estate transaction details are tied to loans.
Property Verification: Cross-check property details such as the address, pricing, and agent information. This is crucial for appraisals and underwriting documentation, ensuring accuracy in the loan processing phase.
Add Listings: Add new property listings directly through the platform to keep the property-lending information up-to-date and streamline the documentation process.
Property-Lending Sync: Ensure each property is properly associated with a loan application, allowing for a seamless documentation and approval process.
By being able to both manage and add listings, you maintain complete control over the real estate details tied to active loans, ensuring accuracy and efficiency in the loan process.
3. Loan Application Features
3.1. New Application: Start New Application
Purpose: "New Application" is where you start the complete loan application process for a borrower, capturing all the required details for submission.
Detailed Functionality:
Full Loan Application: Input all borrower information, such as personal details, income, employment, and financial history, required to process a full loan application.
Document Upload: Attach required documents (e.g., pay stubs, tax returns) for the application. Administrators can ensure that all required documents are submitted correctly and securely.
Compliance Checks: Ensure the application complies with legal and financial regulations by following set guidelines. Certain checks (e.g., for disclosures or legal consents) are built into the system to ensure regulatory compliance.
3.2. New Prequal: Start New Prequalification
Purpose: The "New Prequal" feature allows you to start a prequalification process for borrowers, offering them a preliminary decision on whether they qualify for a loan without going through the full application.
Detailed Functionality:
Prequalification Criteria: Collect basic borrower details to run credit checks and assess financial eligibility for loans. This tool helps give the borrower an early indication of their chances of securing financing.
Automatic Verification: The system can be set up to automatically verify credit scores, income, and other critical factors based on the borrower’s input.
Prequal Follow-Up: Use this feature to help borrowers understand what they need to do to qualify for the full loan and offer them insights into improving their eligibility.
3.3. New Short App: Super Short Application
Purpose: The "New Short App" feature is designed for quick loan submissions, allowing you to gather minimal information to create a simplified application for a borrower.
Detailed Functionality:
Short Form: Collect only the most essential borrower details, reducing the time spent on form-filling, which is ideal for customers who are ready to move forward quickly.
Efficiency: Use this feature to handle straightforward cases where the borrower may already have key information prepared, minimizing back-and-forth communication.
Integration with Full App: Ensure that if a borrower needs to move from a short application to a full one, the transition is smooth without duplicating effort or losing data.
4. Account and Profile Management
My Profile: Manage Personal Information and Credentials
Purpose: The "My Profile" section allows you to manage your personal information, credentials, and account settings, ensuring that your profile remains up-to-date and secure.
Detailed Functionality:
Personal Information Management: Update your personal details such as name, title, and contact information. Keeping this information current helps maintain accurate records for communication with clients and partners.
Profile Updates: Modify your profile information, such as your title and other key details, ensuring your role is correctly reflected in the system.
Email and Account Settings: Your email address is displayed, but it cannot be modified. Other user settings and security-related options can be accessed through the same profile page.
Account Deletion: If necessary, you can delete your account directly from this page, offering full control over your profile.
5. Advanced Features
Encompass Web: Edit Application
Purpose: "Encompass Web" allows you to manage more complex aspects of the loan application process, especially if the loan needs to be integrated into the Encompass system.
Detailed Functionality:
Encompass Integration: This feature allows you to view and manage loan applications that are synced with Encompass, which is useful for advanced tracking, reporting, and compliance.
Document Handling: Ensure that when documents are uploaded, they are synced correctly with Encompass. Loan officers and system administrators must ensure that the document flow between the systems is smooth and accurate.
Advanced Reporting: You can generate reports from the Encompass system to track loan statuses, loan officer performance, and compliance issues. These reports help with long-term loan tracking and performance reviews.
6. Conclusion and Best Practices
As a Loan Officer, this dashboard is your central hub for effectively managing loans, clients, and external partners. To optimize your workflow and ensure smooth operations, follow these best practices:
Keep Loan Information Updated: Regularly review and update loan details to ensure your pipeline remains organized and accurate.
Engage Leads Promptly: Act quickly on leads to increase conversion rates and turn potential clients into completed loan applications.
Foster Partner Relationships: Maintain accurate and current information for your partners, ensuring seamless collaboration and strong professional relationships.
Utilize the Quick Pricer: Offer borrowers precise loan estimates using the Quick Pricer tool to demonstrate your expertise and in still confidence.
Prioritize Security: Regularly monitor and update your security settings to safeguard sensitive client and loan information.
By following these best practices, you’ll improve efficiency, strengthen client relationships, and maintain a secure, well-organized loan management process.
FAQ’s
Why can't borrowers see any files in their portal after the LO/LOA creates a new manual file in Encompass?
The LO says the borrower completed an application, but we can't find it in Encompass. What should we do?
The borrower says they finished the application, but we still can’t find it. What’s the next step?
Loan Lock Issue: Users often encounter a problem where the loan officer has left the loan locked, which prevents processing?
The solution is to unlock the loan, and within 30 minutes, it will process the ones that failed because the loan was locked. Your boss mentioned being asked about this issue several times in the last month.
Why isn't the loan processing or why do I see task documents failing in Encompass?
This often happens because the loan is locked. Ensure the loan officer unlocks the loan, and within 30 minutes, the system will process the tasks that previously failed.