Blue Sage Solutions’ Carmine Cacciavillani on Technology Trends, Needs: Part 2

Carmine Cacciavillani is the President and founder of Blue Sage Solutions, a provider of cloud-based digital technology for the mortgage industry. He has over 30 years of experience developing loan origination technology including the Blue Sage Digital Lending Platform, a browser-based system that provides end-to-end functionality for the entire lending and fulfillment process. Earlier this year, he introduced the Blue Sage Digital Servicing Platform, a LOS-agnostic system that seamlessly merges loan origination and servicing functions in the same cloud ecosystem.

Read part 1 of MBA NewsLink’s conversation with Carmine Cacciavillani here.

MBA NewsLink: Reflecting on the recent slowdown in the purchase market, how has mortgage technology assisted lenders during this period? If lower rates take place this year, how do tech companies intend to support lenders in navigating future market shifts?

Carmine Cacciavillani: Digital mortgage technology has become indispensable. In fact, over the past three years, we’ve seen a 100% increase in client installations of our Digital Lending Platform, which not only helps lenders increase their operational efficiency, but also empowers them to quickly launch the type of loan products that have been in high demand during the high-rate environment, such as second mortgages and HELOCs. We have one credit union client that is using our technology to provide their members with HELOC loan approvals in just 30 minutes. This process used to take an entire week. 

I can’t speak for other providers, but I believe what lenders truly need to navigate future market shifts is agility, which is one of the biggest advantages of cloud-based technology. With the right system, lenders can choose and customize the processes they want to automate, which provides greater flexibility to adjust to market swings without having to constantly hire, fire and rehire staff. Unfortunately, most legacy Loan Origination Systems (LOS) were never intended to be used in a cloud environment, which makes it difficult for lenders to quickly adjust to market changes and still remain profitable.

MBA NewsLink: Are credit unions and community banks leveraging mortgage technology differently than in the past? How do different players in the mortgage sector utilize digital platforms, and what advantages do they seek over larger lenders?

Carmine Cacciavillani: Historically, credit unions and community banks have taken quite different approaches to mortgage technology. Most software vendors catered almost exclusively to either credit unions or mortgage bankers. With the emergence of flexible, cloud-native digital mortgage technology, however, we are starting to see these walls break down. In fact, the number of credit unions leveraging our digital mortgage technology has doubled over the past couple of years.

At a broader level, cloud-built digital technology is helping all financial institutions, regardless of size or the audiences they serve, level the playing field. Before, only the largest lenders were capable of investing in digital platforms, while many smaller organizations relied on a patchwork of different legacy software products that were expensive to maintain and inefficient to update. Thankfully, these hurdles have largely become a thing of the past. Modern, browser-based platforms with application programming interfaces now enable any lender to seamlessly adopt digital technology and integrate new products and services with ease.

MBA NewsLink: We’re seeing connections forming between digital servicing platforms and origination platforms. How does the integration of a digital LOS platform and a digital servicing platform enhance interim servicing operations?

Carmine Cacciavillani: It’s really about creating stronger relationships with borrowers at the point of sale and nurturing those relationships through the life of the loan. In the past, lenders that originated and serviced their own loans relied on separate platforms for both functions. These platforms were often challenging to integrate because they were developed before the emergence of cloud technology. The borrower relationship often suffered as a result.

Now, however, lenders can access digital origination and servicing technology through the same cloud environment. This allows them to smoothly onboard newly closed loans onto their servicing platform while providing a seamless flow of data through the entire loan lifecycle. It also makes it easier and more affordable for smaller banks and credit unions to retain loans in their own portfolio, so they have greater control and provide better experiences over the customer journey.

(Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect policies of the Mortgage Bankers Association, nor do they connote an MBA endorsement of a specific company, product or service. MBA NewsLink welcomes submissions from member firms. Inquiries can be sent to Editor Michael Tucker or Editorial Manager Anneliese Mahoney.)