IBM Opens Mortgage Lending Service Center; Signs Coastal Federal Credit Union

ARMONK, N.Y. — A new IBM facility, for subsidiary IBM Lender Business Process Services, Inc. (LBPS), has opened in Charlotte, N.C., to serve the outsourcing needs of the mortgage-processing industry.

Raleigh-based Coastal Federal Credit Union, which recently signed a five-year deal with LBPS, is expected to save 30 to 40 percent in mortgage origination costs by turning over its loan fulfillment, IBM said.

Formed in 2007, LBPS gives mid-size and smaller lenders a solution for streamlining the lending process. Coastal's agreement outlines services that include loan application processing, underwriting, customer care, vendor management, document preparation and coordinating loan closings.

“The current mortgage market is placing lenders under pressure to manage an inherently high-cost, labor-intensive process,” said Larry Wilson, chief executive officer of Coastal. “By leveraging IBM industry expertise and leading applications, technology and operational capabilities, Coastal will be better able to facilitate, manage, and streamline our business processes to reduce costs and increase efficiencies in our operations, which will ultimately allow us to provide better services to our members.”

“Coastal Federal Credit Union is clearly leveraging IBM's investments and delivery excellence in order to transform their mortgage origination operating model,“ said Greg Sullins, executive director, IBM Lender Business Process Services. “The current mortgage environment has clearly exposed pain points on a much more rapid scale for lenders than one would have ever anticipated. We are excited about the trust Coastal has placed in us and see a growing trend by other lenders to tap into superior capability that otherwise would be too costly to develop and maintain alone.”