N@N

IBM: IBM to Help Mortgage Industry Aid Challenged Homeowners

^{Published on 2009-03-23 09:04:15, Last Modified on 2009-11-03 18:48:14 - Market Wire}
 

ARMONK, NY--(Marketwire - March 23, 2009) - IBM (NYSE: [ IBM ]) today announced a new offering that enables mortgage loan servicers to process large volumes of loan modification requests with greater speed, efficiency and accuracy.

A loan modification is a permanent change in one or more of the terms of a loan that allows the loan to be reinstated and results in a payment the borrower can afford. Recent actions by the U.S. Government intended to aid challenged homeowners are creating a substantial increase in the volume of loan modification requests across the mortgage lending industry.

IBM's new loan modification offering complements existing processes and programs, enabling loan servicing companies to rapidly increase capacity to assist borrowers with loan modification applications without expensive and time consuming technology upgrades.

Key elements of IBM's loan modification offering include:

• Borrower / Portfolio Analytics - a full set of analytics capabilities and tools to analyze borrowers and portfolios to help determine the appropriate option for each borrower's situation. Alternatively, IBM can work with loan servicing companies existing analytics capabilities or preferred 3rd party analytics providers.
• Borrower Outreach - development and execution of a complete borrower engagement campaign, including mass mailing and telephone outreach designed to educate borrowers on loan modification options.
• Loan Modification Fulfillment - IBM performs loan modification fulfillment according to investor and servicer business rules, including: collection of required documentation, verification of borrower eligibility, document preparation, and customer care.
• Web Enabled Loan Modifications - Servicers who choose to use IBM's technology platform can take advantage of a secure borrower web portal, enabling borrowers to complete the majority of the loan modification process through over the Internet.
• Imaging Services - Closing coordination between servicers and investors is a critical factor in ensuring success of modification efforts. IBM images all documents involved in the loan modification process and can provide an investor portal to enable investors to have visibility throughout the modification process.

"Loan servicing companies and investors face complex operational challenges in the area of loan modification, as well as increasing pressures from governments, regulators and unprecedented customer volume," said Eric Ray, general manager, Financial Services Sector, IBM Managed Business Process Services. "IBM recognizes these challenges and has developed a powerful loan modification services tool to help existing and potential clients operate with maximum efficiency and cost effectiveness."

IBM's new loan modification services offering has been designed as a completely outsourced turnkey solution. It can also be delivered in a modular capacity, allowing servicers to add specific capabilities where needed. The offering can be tailored to support government sponsored loan modification initiatives or loan servicing companies' alternative loan modification programs. Loan servicing companies can also choose to leverage IBM's technology platform or perform modifications on their existing platform while utilizing IBM's leading business process outsourcing capabilities and mortgage domain expertise.

About IBM

For more information about IBM please visit [ www.ibm.com/services ]