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While the recession may be about over, loan modifications persist, and will for some time. It's a highly complex task with even higher stakes. When handled  correctly members keep their homes, your credit union keeps its members. A great deal of the loan modification burden falls to mortgage loan servicers under the government and many private programs. During this session Steve Kravits, Vice President of Default at Cenlar, will share his insight on how to identify loan modification candidates, the proper way to structure modified loans, how and when to follow-up with borrowers and how to correctly account for restructured debt.

Joe Brancucci, Prime Alliance Solutions, Inc

BECU, the nation's fourth largest credit union, has been a mortgage lender for just 15 years. From no mortgage program in the early 1990s to one of the dominant lenders in its market, the credit union strategically and methodically built its strategy, culture and infrastructure to meet the real estate financing needs of its members.

Fifteen years on, BECU is one of the most successful credit unions in the country, having grown from just under $2 billion in assets serving just under 200,000 members to almost $9 billion in assets serving over 600,000 members. The 'Home Event', which starts when their member begins thinking about buying a house, is one of the fundamentals upon which their growth strategy is built.

Evolution is never-ending. Join Joe Branucci, EVP and COO, as he discusses how BECU chose the Home Event and Real Estate Lending as the means to propel this leading credit union into the future. Mr. Brancucci will also discuss their plans for the coming years as BECU seeks to become the only financial institution their members, especially first-time buyers, think of when it comes time to buy and finance their homes.

I.  Attract More Members. Close More Loans

Presented by: Tracy Ashfield, Prime Alliance Solutions, Inc., and Jeff Shood, Intuvo, LLC

You've spent the last several years tackling the intricacies of mortgage production efficiencies, and it's paid off. After 2009 we know we can effectively process more than three-times normal volumes while keeping member service levels high.  Now that we're efficient, it's time to figure out how to make last year's volume the new every day norm. The secret to helping more members become homeowners with the help of their credit union is to know what they are thinking long before they begin shopping or seek financing. We'll talk about the concept of how member approach home buying, and what you can do to meet them early in the process. Then turn to the topics the latest methods of making sure members who apply with you close with you.  

II. Capital Markets

Presented by: Jeff Harry and Trez Moore, Capital Markets Cooperative

What? No Freddie? No Fannie? This past week Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) and the House Financial Services Committee announced they will be recommending abolishing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in their current form and coming up with a whole new system of housing finance. While no one expects this to happen immediately or soon, this news wasn't unexpected. While we may have a year or more before changes such as these happen, the time to strategize is now. In this session you'll learn about the potential timelines for a revised housing finance system, and steps we're taking to create an alternative capital market for credit union mortgage loans, a decades-old goal of the credit union system. Affordable housing finance for members is at stake!

III. CLOs are from Mars, CFOs are from Venus

Chief Lending Officers and Chief Financial Officers speak different languages. They also place different values on lending activities. CLOs value volume, market share and risk management while CFOs concern themselves with duration, mortgage servicing rights and a language no one understands called Financial Accounting Standards. Now more than ever CLOs and CFOs must work together, and, to work together, they must really understand one another so that their credit union's strategies succeed. Join two of the credit union industry's most engaging and thought-provoking professionals as they discuss how they've learned to bridge the gap between lending and finance and the impact its had on their credit unions.

IV. Fair-Lending and Credit Unions

Presented by: Jeff Lazerson, President, Mortgage Grader and Howard Banker, Executive Director, Fair Mortgage Collaborative

The Department of Justice has quietly begun forming a new fair-lending unit within the Housing Section of its Civil Rights Division, according to top agency officials. Not so quietly a group known as the Fair Mortgage Collaborative has been working to create a 'Good Housekeeping' seal of approval program for lenders who pledge to treat borrowers fairly. Credit unions are a natural fit, and Prime Alliance credit unions are a perfect fit for Fair Mortgage certification. During this session you'll hear from the founders of the Fair Mortgage Collaborative, how the effort began, their quest to certify lenders, how the certification process works and the benefit to your credit union. The lack of fair lending practices contributed to the sub-prime crisis and the recession. Efforts such as these  create a better environment for housing finance and a better experience for your members.

V. The Future of Lending Technology, Prime Alliance Style

Dan Green, Prime Alliance Solutions, Inc

Technology supposedly makes our lives easier, and, when it comes to manufacturing mortgage loans, it clearly does. In the past decade we've gone from paper-bound process to fully integrate, fully electronic lending. What remarkable things will we see in the coming decade? How will technology change mortgage finance? What will the process be like in 2020? Join Dan Green for a discussion on technology trends past, present and future, their affects on your credit union and on Prime Alliance.

VI.  Mortgage Lending with Mass Appeal

Scott Strand, Senior Vice President, Lending, BECU

What's a credit union to do? Members want low rates and easy terms. Realtors want even lower rates and even easier terms. Regulators, well, they want something altogether different. Yet a successful credit union must balance its mortgage lending program so that it meets the needs of every audience. While never easy, doing so has become remarkably complex in today's environment.  Join us to learn how his credit union managed to close more than 8,000 loans in 2009 while keeping members happy, serving the real estate community, and satisfying regulatory concerns about real estate lending.

Be sure to continually visit http://www.drivinghome.org or click the Symposium link located on the PA homepage for more details and the latest 2010 Symposium news.

Copyright © 2010 Prime Alliance Solutions, Inc.