Garden Grove, Calif., March 7, 2024 — Informative Research, a leading technology platform that delivers data-driven solutions to the lending community, announced that lenders using Fannie Mae’s Desktop Underwriter® (DU®) can now leverage a 12-month asset verification report to validate income and employment in addition to assets with a single asset report. By using direct deposit banking data to evaluate income and employment, lenders can streamline processes and improve the borrower experience.
“AccountChek has long been a trusted source of data to validate a consumer’s assets, rent payments and cash flow, and now with the ability for lenders to leverage bank account data for the purpose of validating a consumer’s income and employment in DU, we offer even greater value to our customers,” said Informative Research Head of AccountChek Brian Francis. “By allowing DU users to leverage one report to satisfy multiple verification needs, Fannie Mae has provided lenders with a tremendous lift in terms of productivity and expense management[1]. Additionally, lenders do not have to order a special report to participate in this program, as AccountChek already provides the needed transaction data to DU in the existing asset report.”
Once borrowers have authorized access to their financial information via AccountChek, the system retrieves the relevant information – including income deposits, expenses, and account balances – and generates a comprehensive report summarizing the data. This data is shared with the lender’s point-of-sale platform and/or loan origination system, and in the AccountChek dashboard. AccountChek’s direct integration with DU ensures the necessary data flows into DU as part of the loan submission to analyze income and employment eligibility along with assets.
In addition to improving operational efficiency and lowering costs, using a single source of data for assets, income and employment verification may also help lenders:
- Streamline large deposit verification by reducing documentation requirements.
- Enhance the borrower experience by reducing the documents borrowers have to provide, which could increase the chances of securing borrowers’ business.
- Achieve Day 1 Certainty® through relief from representation and warranties when income, employment, and/or asset information is validated, which may increase loan quality and reduce repurchase risk.
“With DU, lenders can now get even more benefits from using a single 12-month asset report,” said Peter Skarnulis, Fannie Mae Vice President, Business Account Management Solutions. “We continue to look for ways to help lenders streamline their validation processes and improve the borrower experience, and this latest enhancement helps them do just that.”
In addition, lenders may increase the number of borrowers that receive an Approve/Eligible recommendation in DU by assessing eligibility through rent payment identification and a cash flow assessment.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to innovate in the underwriting space,” said Mark Fisher, Fannie Mae Vice President for Credit Risk Solutions. “Now, with a 12-month asset report, DU offers even more value than before, benefiting both lenders and borrowers.”
Fannie Mae has established clear guidelines and resources to facilitate the onboarding of lenders into the program, ensuring a seamless transition to streamlined verification processes. To get started, visit Fannie Mae's webpage, and submit the request form to begin the activation process.
About Informative Research
Informative Research, a Stewart company, is a leading technology platform that delivers data-driven solutions to the lending community. The solutions provider currently serves mortgage companies, banks, and lenders throughout the United States. The company is recognized for streamlining the loan process with its straightforward service model, progressive solutions, and cutting-edge technology. To learn more, visit https://www.informativeresearch.com.
