MISMO has released remote online notarizations standards for a 60-day public comment period—in a bid to ensure lenders avoid the inefficiency of dozens of state-level protocols.

The aim is for the standards to face a rigorous review from organizations and industry participants—that demonstrates the standards are ready for broad use across the mortgage industry. Once the comment period is completed, the standards could be elevated to Candidate Recommendation status.

Over the past few years, a number of states have enacted laws allowing the use of audio-visual communication devices to notarize documents in real-estate transactions. These devices have provided borrowers, homebuyers and sellers the convenience of signing their closing papers online from a remote location.

At the same time, the mortgage industry asked MISMO to develop standards to promote consistency across the states that passed RON legislation. MISMO's RON standards enable states to adopt consistent practices that make it possible for lenders and other industry participants to adopt new procedures to meet consumer demands for convenience and an improved experience. The comment period will remain open from Feb. 19 to April 22, 2019.

[caption id="attachment_10197" align="alignright" width="310"] Oddo: Aim is to facilitate common "processes, procedures and technology requirements."[/caption]

“As new state laws legalizing remote online notarizations are passed and await implementation, MISMO’s remote online notarization standards provide a blueprint for regulation that secretaries of state can use to expedite the development of draft regulations,” said Eddie Oddo, vice president of corporate business solutions at First American Title Insurance Co. “The proposed standards are designed to enable all mortgage industry participants, including various state officials, to adopt standard processes, procedures and technology requirements for implementing remote online notarizations which will promote consistency nationwide.”

The new standards include credential analysis, borrower identification, capturing and maintaining a recording of the notary process electronically, audio and video requirements, record storage and audit trails. MISMO is communicating with secretaries of state across the U.S. to encourage the adoption of the standards in their respective regulations. Uniformity of regulations benefits all parties that might use RON services, from lenders to notaries to consumers.

In addition to creating standards, the MISMO Remote Online Notary Workgroup is developing best practices, implementation guides and other educational materials to help industry participants leverage the standards in their businesses.

The comment period is also intended to afford work group participants who worked on the proposed RON standards at least 30 days’ notice prior to final release of the standards to review them and disclose any applicable Patent Rights, as defined by MISMO’s 2018 Intellectual Property Rights Policy.

The Mortgage Bankers Association and the American Land Title Association collaborated to prepare model legislation that provides the framework for any state to adopt a RON process.

 Pentagon Federal Credit Union, the second largest credit union in the U.S., has inked a deal for the MSP loan servicing system, default solutions and other applications from Black Knight.

The MSP system encompasses all aspects of servicing--from loan boarding to default-- for first mortgages and home-equity loans and lines of credit. Used to service more than 34 million active loans, the MSP system helps servicers increase operational efficiency, reduce operating costs and improve risk mitigation. In addition, Pentagon Federal will use several Black Knight default solutions, including loss mitigation, bankruptcy, foreclosure and invoicing.

Also, Pentagon Federal will use Black Knight's Servicing Digital platform, an interactive mobile application that will deliver detailed, timely and highly personalized loan information to members about the value of their homes and the amount of wealth that

"Black Knight's suite of servicing and default products will provide us with the technology we need to increase PenFed's operational efficiency, the scalability to easily accommodate growth, and the ability to support our commitment to meet compliance requirements," said Winston Wilkinson, executive vice president/president of mortgage banking for Pentagon Federal. "We are also excited to offer the Servicing Digital solution to our members for anytime, anywhere access to information and functionality that will enhance their experience."

In addition, Pentagon Federal will be using the Black Knight Expedite eSign and eDocument delivery services, which enable members to electronically view and sign data and documents. Also, the credit union has licensed Order Exchange, enabling servicers to streamline their product-ordering process.

To further support its servicing operations, Pentagon Federal will use the Black Knight Actionable Intelligence Platform to provide proactive intelligence that will benefit its servicing operation.

 "Black Knight is proud to support Pentagon Federal's growing business using our comprehensive and innovative technology, data and analytics solutions for the company's servicing operations and to enhance member experience," said Black Knight chief executive officer Anthony Jabbour. "We continue to invest in our extensive solutions to offer the advanced features and functionality our clients need to deliver a premier consumer experience and support operational efficiency gains that can help them reduce overall costs."

A sixth consecutive month of declining home sales in January contributed to the largest year-over-year inventory increase in at least 10 years, according to the RE/MAX National Housing Report.

While year-over-year home sales dropped 11 percent, extending a streak that began in August, inventory grew year-over-year by an average of 6.4 percent across the report's 54 U.S. metro areas. January marked the fourth consecutive month of year-over-year inventory growth, which reversed a decade-long trend of shrinking inventory. December 2018's year-over-year inventory growth of 4.7 percent was the previous record in the report's 10-year history.

"The winter chill extended to the housing market in January, as home sales remained cool," said Adam Contos, CEO at RE/MAX. "The good news is that inventory levels in January continued to rise on a year-over-year basis, providing incremental improvement in what's been a multi-year shortage of for-sale homes. This is a positive for homebuyers, as the market continues to swing their way."

The median sales price of $234,000 was a report record for January, increasing 4.6% over January 2018. But the rate of sales price increase was considerably less than the 6.7% posted from January 2017 to January 2018. December 2018 was the only month since January 2012 to show a year-over-year decline in median sales price.

Fifty-nine days on market was a record low for January sold listings, averaging one day less than the 60 posted in January 2018. January's 3.9-month supply of inventory was higher than the 3.4-month supply of January 2018.

"Underlying demand remains solid overall, as evidenced by widespread price increases," said Contos. "So the housing market, while not markedly busy in January, remains relatively healthy. Furthermore, with interest rates stabilizing and home-price increases slowing, the spring selling season shapes up to be as interesting as any we have seen in years."

Closed transactions
Of the 54 metro areas surveyed in January 2019, the overall average number of home sales was down 26.1 percent compared to December 2018, and down 11.0 percent compared to January 2018. Only Billings, Mont., experienced an increase in sales year-over-year of 7.1 percent.

Median sales price of 54 metro median prices
In January 2019, the median of all 54 metro median sales prices was $234,000, down 2.5 percent from December 2018, and up 4.6 percent from January 2018. Four metro areas saw a year-over-year decrease in median sales price, including Anchorage, Alaska, declined 3.9 percent, Pittsburgh, down 2 percent , Trenton, N.J., dropped 1.5 percent, and Birmingham, AL, declined 0.5 percent.

Six metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages, with the largest increases seen in Augusta, Maine, 12.1 percent, Las Vegas, 11.2 percent, and Wichita, Kansas, 10.5 percent.

Days on market--average of 54 metro areas
The average Days on Market for homes sold in January 2019 was 59, up four days from the average in December 2018, and down one day from the January 2018 average. The metro areas with the lowest days on market were Omaha, Neb., 32, Nashville, Tenn., 41, and a three-way tie among Las Vegas, Cincinnati, and San Francisco at 43. The highest Days on Market averages were in Augusta, Maine, 100, Hartford, Conn., 94, and Anchorage, Alaska, 93. Days on market is the number of days between when a home is first posted on an Multiple Listing Service and a sales contract is signed.

Months of housing inventory – average of 54 metro areas
The number of homes for sale in January 2019 was down 2.6% from December 2018 and up 6.4% from January 2018. Based on the rate of home sales in January, inventory decreased to 3.9, from 4.1 in December 2018, and increased compared to 3.4 in January 2018. A six-months supply indicates a market balanced equally between buyers and sellers. In January 2019, nine of the 54 metro areas surveyed reported a supply at or over six months, indicating a buyer's market, including Miami, 9 and Indianapolis, 8.6. Nine markets shared the lowest supply, 2.0.