TransUnion Settlement Solutions to Offer Fraud and ID Management Solutions

TransUnion Settlement Solutions today announced the availability of its sophisticated fraud and identity management products to the mortgage industry. The announcement was made at the Mortgage Banking Association’s (MBA) 92nd Annual Convention & Expo in Orlando. Designated a top priority for the MBA in 2006, incidences of mortgage fraud have almost doubled this year compared to 2004.

By integrating TransUnion’s fraud and identity management solutions directly into their loan origination system (LOS) and Automated Underwriting Systems, mortgage lenders can now take steps to reduce the different types of fraud that is occurring in this aspect of their business.

“Lenders are seeking a comprehensive way to address fraud cost-effectively,” said Bill Sullivan, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing for TransUnion Settlement Solutions. “By accessing TransUnion’s fraud management tools via an automated underwriting system, lenders can leverage the data already entered into a borrower’s loan application to detect fraudulent activity real time using a single platform. This is a value-added benefit for our industry.”

The following fraud and identity management solutions can easily be integrated into the underwriting process:

• Borrower identification — TransUnion’s fraud and identity management solutions leverage multi-source databases to verify and, if necessary, authenticate that the personal information on a borrower’s mortgage application is not fraudulent. This helps mortgage lenders ensure they are processing an application for a legitimate customer.
• Loan data verification — TransUnion’s Irregular Sales Indicator alerts lenders when the subject property, a neighborhood property or both have a recent irregular sale price and provides a history of sales transactions for the neighborhood.
• Collateral valuation/property services — TransUnion’s Collateral Market Value verifies a customer-estimated value or an appraised value in a quality control environment. It also can be used to spot over-inflated appraisal values, particularly useful when assessing the accuracy of broker-submitted loans.

According to the FBI’s “Financial Crimes Report to the Public May 2005,” mortgage fraud is “pervasive and growing.” The report indicated that financial institutions reported losses of $429 billion in 2004, up from $229 billion in 2003. “Our objective is to give customers access to proven solutions to manage the risks and losses associated with mortgage fraud,” said Sullivan.

In addition to the fraud management products, TransUnion offers mortgage lenders comprehensive Fraud Response Services in the event of a database compromise. Through the offering, TransUnion provides businesses with a full range of partnership services and tools to enhance fraud prevention, consumer notification, identity management and loss mitigation.