For Wyndham Capital Mortgage, creating an exceptional borrower experience has always been a top priority. When the national lender began using robotic process automation (RPA) in 2018, meeting this goal became a lot easier. HPA sat down with Trip Jendron, SVP of Origination Initiatives and Strategy, to learn more about how automation has helped Wyndham deliver a top-notch borrower experience.
“Automation helps us close loans as quickly as possible and create an amazing, convenient experience for borrowers. We aim to offer 5-star service to each borrower, every time – with no exceptions. HPA’s contribution has helped not only with efficiency and cost reduction, but there are other tangible benefits to finishing a loan faster and with less effort.”Trip Jendron
Four Borrower Benefits of Mortgage Process Automation
Deliver lending decisions faster.
“Robots don’t wait. As soon as we lock in a loan, the robots are working on it,” Jendron said. “Say we locked a rate Friday evening, which happens all the time. We don’t have to wait until Monday to start processing. There is a lot of service ordering to be done, and we need to get in front of that.”
The last thing Wyndham wants, Jendron explains, is to keep a borrower waiting – and since they have reduced their average loan closing time by 20 days, long wait times are a thing of the past. Since robots are able to order documentation 24/7, the loan is able to progress with no idle time. The faster loans are closed, the lower Wyndham can keep their lock times. Delaying the loan closing could keep a borrower waiting anxiously, leading to a negative experience and bad reviews.
A common borrower concern is that something may cause their loan to fall through. But Wyndham makes a promise that may ease borrowers’ minds.
“So many borrowers wonder – will there be any issues? Will this fall through?” he said. “Applying for a loan is a big decision, and they’ve invested so much time and money. Our on-time closing guarantee gives them peace of mind. We are so confident that loans will close on time, we back it up with a financial promise.”
Wyndham is able to offer borrowers an on-time closing guarantee for purchase loans that promises to pay out $10,000 if there are any issues closing on time.
Lower costs, more competitive rates.
Automating the service ordering process allows Wyndham to close loans much faster, and the saved time translates to cost savings passed through to borrowers. Since lock times are kept so low, Wyndham can offer borrowers lower prices than the industry average. In conjunction, automation increases the lender’s pull-through rates, which reduces the cost required to produce a loan. This drives prices down even further. As a result, Wyndham is able to waive lender’s fees, as well as offer interest rates that are lower than many of their competitors.
An on-time closing guarantee is not the only promise Wyndham makes to borrowers. To protect consumers from unexpected expenses, Wyndham guarantees that if initial or lock disclosures are not sent back to the borrower within three days, they will pay any associated costs or fee changes. Additionally, Wyndham must notify the borrower about any fee changes with a change of circumstance disclosure within three days or cover any associated costs. Automation gives Wyndham the confidence that these disclosures will be sent on time, eliminating the risk for financial loss.
More face time with borrowers.
By offsetting so much of the mortgage loan process to robots, both borrowers and employees have fewer tasks. As a result, borrowers are not kept waiting for application approval, and employees have more time to assist customers with questions or concerns. Since robots pull all required documentation ahead of time, it is much easier for employees to assist borrowers when they call or e-mail with questions. Automation allows Wyndham to provide 5-star customer service to every borrower, every time.
Happy employees, happy customers.
Wyndham employees have experienced more job satisfaction since they began their automation journey. “By removing menial tasks, our employees now get to focus on critical, thought-based work. Not ‘hand-work,’ but ‘head work,’” said Jendron. “We have created better work-life balance, job satisfaction, and customer service ability. Happier employees generally lead to happier customers.”
Wyndham also repurposed several employees to focus more on the experience of their borrowers. The client experience team focuses on building relationships with new borrowers and strengthening relationships with existing accounts. Nurturing healthy consumer relationships allows employees to feel more fulfilled in their daily work, and borrowers reap all the benefits.
Wyndham experienced a boost in borrower ratings since they began automating with HPA in 2018. The lender currently boasts a 4.8 out of 5 stars on both Zillow and Google reviews.