Ellie Mae's New HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services Provide Fast and Easy Way to Achieve Compliance With New Guidelines

New Home Valuation Code of Conduct regulations in effect on May 1, 2009, require mortgage professionals to change the way they do business with appraisers

PLEASANTON, CA—March 13, 2009—Ellie Mae, the leading provider of loan processing software for mortgage bankers, brokers and other third party originators, announces its HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services, a new program designed to help banker, lender and broker clients to fully comply with the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) that goes into effect on May 1, 2009.

"The Home Valuation Code of Conduct's guidelines will require mortgage professionals to change the way they do business with appraisers," says Ellie Mae's senior vice president, Richard Roof. "After May 1, originators who fail to comply with the HVCC may be faced with penalties, the inability to sell loans, or in the case of brokers, will be unable to submit their loan applications to the wholesale lender of their choice."

Ellie Mae's HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services will leverage technology enhancements, partnerships with appraisal management companies (AMCs), and direct connection via the ePASS Network to facilitate HVCC-compliant ordering and delivery of appraisals for Ellie Mae's banker, broker and lender clients, who together originate 50 percent of the nation's third-party origination loan volume, and 25 percent of the nation's mortgages each year. With the HVCC-related enhancements to the Encompass Mortgage Management Solution, companies gain the ability to control which staff members can electronically order appraisals, create rules based on property location and loan type, and create and manage their own appraisal panels. Users will also be able to connect directly with top appraisal management companies that are integrated to the ePASS Network.  Ellie Mae is working with correspondent and wholesale lenders to incorporate solutions that enhance appraisal portability and simplify lender re-certifications. 

The Home Valuation Code of Conduct was established by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (formerly OFHEO). In short, the HVCC sets forth a series of guidelines that govern appraisal-related activity among mortgage companies for loans that are sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in an effort to reduce the risks associated with the appraisal process.  Most of the HVCC's stipulations are focused around ensuring objectivity in ordering real estate appraisals by brokers and correspondent lenders. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not accept loans on or after May 1, 2009 that do not adhere to the Home Valuation Code of Conduct.

Ellie Mae's HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services will be comprised of the following:

• Encompass product enhancements that enable correspondent lenders to manage and administer their HVCC policies, manage their own appraisal panel, compliantly order appraisals from appraisal management companies integrated into Encompass, and access all appraisal related documents and information via the Encompass eFolder.
• Partnerships with the industry's most widely approved appraisal management companies, as well as appraisal management companies that are successfully targeting the third party originator market.
• A "black box" appraisal center that will enable "blind" HVCC-compliant appraisal ordering for wholesale lenders and their mortgage brokers, enhancing appraisal portability and simplifying lender re-certifications.
• New automated valuation models and additional valuation services, available to all originators at the point of sale through the Encompass network, to help assure that loans are properly pre-qualified and targeted.

Several of the industry's most widely accepted and leading appraisal management companies have partnered with Ellie Mae to participate in the HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services program, including First American eAppraiseIT, ServiceLink, Finiti, StreetLinks, and AppraiserLoft.  Three appraisal management companies that are also participating are also already integrated into the Encompass network: CBCInnovis, DartAppraisal.com and Nations Valuation Services.  Ellie Mae plans to continue adding appraisal management companies on a case-by-case basis. 

Roof adds, "Ellie Mae's HVCC-Compliant Appraisal Services alleviate the burden of compliance by providing mortgage professionals with the tools to quickly, easily and electronically procure appraisals according to Home Valuation Code of Conduct guidelines, at no additional cost to the mortgage banker, lender or broker."

About Ellie Mae, Inc.
Ellie Mae is an award-winning provider of software and services for the mortgage industry, offering comprehensive business solutions for mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers and lenders. The company's key offerings include the flagship Encompass® Mortgage Management Solution, Encompass CenterWise™ and Encompass Closer. More than 120,000 mortgage professionals use the Encompass Mortgage Management Solution, including two-thirds of the nation's top 300 brokers. Ellie Mae, recipient of the prestigious Inman Award as the most innovative company in the mortgage industry, is recognized for developing technology that links the many parties critical to the mortgage origination industry through its patented ePASS® Network. One quarter of the nation's almost $2 trillion in new mortgages originated every year pass through the ePASS platform, enabling mortgage companies to easily and securely conduct electronic business transactions with dozens of leading lenders and more than 2,000 settlement service providers. Ellie Mae is also the parent of Online Documents, the industry's leading provider of flexible, compliant electronic mortgage documents and related services for the mortgage industry. Ellie Mae was founded in 1998 and is based in Pleasanton, California. To learn more about Ellie Mae, visit www.EllieMae.com or call 877.355.4362.

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© 2009 Ellie Mae, Inc. All rights reserved. Ellie Mae, Encompass, and ePASS (patent No. 7,444,302) are registered trademarks and Encompass CenterWise and Encompass Closer are trademarks of Ellie Mae, Inc. in the United States.