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In most states,  VSI insurance can be directly disclosed and fully passed on to your borrower without affecting your Annual Percentage Rate (APR). Unitas Financial Services's VSI policy covers your financial institution for damage losses that you sustain from uninsured repossessions or skip losses where your borrower and/or collateral cannot be located (along with other coverages).  By having the coverage, you are also relieved of the responsibility of tracking insurance documents on the covered collateral.

It’s no secret that interest rates are on the rise. If your customers haven’t taken advantage of refinancing their first mortgage loans by now, it may be too late for them to make it a cost-effective option.The market for refinancing a first mortgage to pay off debt, finance home improvements, or simply do a cash-out refi is just not as attractive as it was when rates were historically low. This creates an opportunity for junior lien mortgages, typically called HELOCs or HELOANs, to be in higher demand.

Many lenders who still manually track mortgage insurance may have heard of a solution to tracking mortgage collateral insurance called Blanket Mortgage Insurance.  But what does blanket mortgage protection typically cover? The master policy in many cases is identical to what would be issued in the typical tracking and lender-placed scenario. The same limits can be obtained, and all the same coverages and exclusions still apply. Some companies offer other versions of blanket mortgage, so it is important to clarify exactly what’s covered and what’s not. Blanket Mortgage can cover all real estate in your portfolios and can be separated out by portfolio.

This can be a touchy subject because of the close relationship that many lenders have with automobile dealers. However, that does not change the fact that there are serious concerns that should be taken into account by lenders when they finance Gap Waiver. Most lenders don't realize that Gap Waivers state clearly that they are addendums to your loan agreement and affect the way your loan performs when there is a total loss. When you finance a Gap Waiver, did you know that you, the lender, are agreeing to waive much or all of the remaining balance when your borrower’s primary auto policy doesn’t pay off the loan?

Is it time to take another look at your consumer auto loan collateral protection and insurance tracking? More and more lenders have begun to realize the shortcomings and administrative hassles common with Collateral Protection Insurance (CPI) programs using outsourced tracking.

Commercial Real Estate (CRE) Appraisal Requirements Raised to $500,000—A Welcomed Relief for Community Banks

Since 1994, commercial real estate loans over $250,000 needed a full appraisal that conformed with laborious Title XI requirements.  As of April 2, 2018, The Federal Reserve, FDIC and OCC released a new rule raising the full appraisal exemption for Banks on loans at or below $500,000.