Access Business Technologies hosts Mortgage Servicing Software for some of the largest Credit Unions in the country. It's "Tax Time" again and we don't want your members to miss out on their mortgage deductions. Some tax deductions to consider are those relating to the purchase of a home, refinancing an existing loan, an existing
mortgage, or a short sale. This article is written for them.
Purchasing of a home. At closing you will receive a HUD-1 statement, also referred to as the closing statement. This statement should show all the money that you have spent in relation to the purchase of the home and the allocation of the money spent. In most cases, there will be a small amount of property tax that you have paid, this is a tax deductible expense. You will also see mortgage loan origination fees and Points on the HUD-1. These are also tax deductible expenses. What is a mortgage loan origination fee? This fee is the administrative costs associated with getting the loan, such as fees paid to attorneys, notary public fees, and the preparation costs. Are you wondering what a point is? Points are the upfront fees that equal one percent of the loan. Points can lower your mortgage interest rate. Remember, don't miss out on your mortgage deductions this year.
- Loan Origination fees
- Points
Refinancing an existing loan. When you refinance, points paid can be deducted over the life of the loan. In this situation, you should take into consideration, new points, old points, and early payoff. What are new points? New points are those points that have been incurred for the new loan. Old points are those that are left over from the old loan in the year that you convert to the new loan. What about an early payoff you ask? If you decide to pay your mortgage loan off early, you can deduct any remaining points in the year that you pay the loan off.
- Old Points
- New Points
- Early Payoff Points
Existing Mortgage. Deductible real estate taxes are generally any state, local or foreign taxes on real property. These taxes must be charged uniformly against all property in the jurisdiction and must be based on the assessed value. You can also deduct the mortgage interest and property taxes that you paid for the year. Mortgage interest is reported to you on Form 1098. If your property taxes are paid through escrow, the Form 1098 should show how much you paid for property taxes as well. If the form doesn't show the amount of property taxes paid, you can refer to your property tax statements that you receive twice a year.
- Mortgage interest (primary and secondary residence)
- Property taxes paid during the year
- State, local, or foreign taxes
Short Sale. If you receive a 1099-C (Cancellation of Debt) as the result of a short sale and
you meet certain exceptions, thanks to the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of
2007, you can exclude the canceled amount from your taxable income. You can refer to the following IRS webpage for more information: http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=179414,00.html.
- Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007
Sale of primary residence under normal circumstances. If you decided to sell your primary residence under normal circumstances, you can exclude a gain on the sale price of up to to$250,000 for single tax filers, and $500,000 for married filers who file jointly.
Refer to IRS Publication 523 for more information regarding the gain exclusion on the sale of your primary residence. Capital gain exclusions are only applicable to the sale of your primary residence providing that you meet the ownership and use tests. Again, don't miss out on your tax deductions this year.
Cloud computing is an excellent way for businesses to save money while growing
their infrastructure. With the rapid demand of cloud computing comes many technology firms that specialize in this. While many are helpful, it’s important you find one that is right for your business.
Not all businesses and industries are the same. This means their cloud computing needs are going to be different based on their network sizes. This can be problematic if you choose the wrong technology company to manage your cloud network because if they don’t understand your business needs, they won’t be on the same page and this can lead to headaches and
reduced efficiency over the long haul.
To avoid this, it’s important to research the firm you want to handle your cloud. See if they have extensive experience in managing mortgage companies of your size. It may also be beneficial to network with other companies in your industry to see whom they have used and what the results have been like. By doing your research before hiring the firm, you can ensure you and your technology consultant are on the same page, they will be able to build you a cloud network based on the growing demands of your business and you won’t have to worry about losing efficiency in the process.
More and more mortgage lenders are utilizing software tools including loan servicing through cloud solutions, not just in an effort to save overhead, but also to streamline their current infrastructure. There are multiple reasons to upgrade to cloud-based mortgage loan servicing over in-house servicing.
Changing Times
Many IT professionals encourage the proactive switch to cloud-based applications, because so many upcoming software upgrades are designed for use only in the cloud. The bulk of research and development efforts also are turning toward the ultimate goal of mortgage loan servicing now in the cloud. Ever-changing technology puts an increased burden of demand on credit unions to keep up through continual software and hardware upgrades.
Why the cloud?
Software companies love cloud-based hosting because it’s much easier for them to license and release new products, as well as provide updates and upgrades to existing ones. Newer
developers are now providing software exclusively for the cloud rather than offering in-house options. Credit unions benefit from increased ease of access to the newest technologies while shifting some of the workload away from their existing IT staff. The need for constant upgrades is similarly removed. Credit unions are also saved from compliance concerns, because that responsibility falls to their vendors instead.
Ideal for small credit unions
Small credit unions are already struggling to find and maintain trained personnel for the high-stress demands necessary for efficient mortgage servicing. Switching to mortgage loan servicing now in the cloud frees up valuable resources, removing the strain of keeping up in-house equipment and training upgrades for IT personnel. In the past, hardware advances have changed so quickly as to make it nearly impossible to keep up without regular system overhauls, which can be quite costly. Cloud-based hosting removes that burden from the credit unions themselves, allowing for their priority to return instead to increased customer focus.
Staying ahead of the curve
Because cloud technology is so new and its popularity is just now beginning to grow, credit unions who switch to cloud-based hosting sooner will stand above their competition. In addition to making more efficient use of their resources, they’ll also be able to take full
advantage of the increased time-to-market afforded by cloud hosting. The capability of offering multiple integrated services is also increased when moving to cloud-based mortgage servicing.
Safe and secure
Cloud-based hosting services for mortgage loan service providers are more likely and able to use cutting edge security precautions using the newest technology. Older in-house systems remain more vulnerable, with an increased risk for outages. Smaller credit unions may not have the staff or know-how needed to provide and maintain compliant, secure systems. Many security experts suggest that mortgage loan servicing now in the cloud provides increased safety advantages over in-house servicing.
For over 11 years ABT continues to work with Banks and Credit Unions who are looking for an easy to use, Mortgage Servicing software tool for use in their Mortgage Departments. These organizations want a system that is hosted and provides a complete loan servicing solution. We have been asked many questions over the years. While each situation is unique, there are 5 questions that always come up.
Question 1: If I host with you, is my data safe?
Answer: A logical question. After all you are handing the financial records of your customer/members, to another company. If this data is compromised it could be disastrous. As I have mentioned in other blogs, research the company you are considering. A great way of doing this is to talk with their current clients who are hosting the same software you are considering. How long have they been hosting that software? Are they compliant with banking regulations and can provide proper certifications? Are they easy to work with? Do they know the software and how available is their Tech Support Group? Finding out the answers to these questions before the contracts are signed will help eliminate suprises later.
Question 2: Will I still need my IT department?
Answer: You are not looking to replace your IT dept. Rather you are trying to offload some of their work, allowing them to concentrate on the core banking systems. It is important to work with a hosting company that understands the software and can work with your internal IT dept. Your hosting company is an extension of your IT group. The two groups should work together and complement each other.
Question 3: If an issue comes up who should be contacted? the software vendor - our IT department - or the hosting company?
Answer: It depends... But a consistent plan of action should be laid out for your team. You do not want your people waisting time trying to figure who they should be calling. It is logical that tech support calls should begin with the hosting company (they are acting as an extension of your internal IT group). They should be able to identify the problem and bring in the approprate group(s) to create a solution to the issue.
Question 4: If my software is hosted by another company how can I get the data back into my Core System(s)?
Answer: Integration into existing systems is very important. You will need loan data flowing into your core system so your tellers can provide information to your customers. Utilizing the core system should provide a way for your customers to have access to their loan data as well. Being hosted does not change the processes of feeding data from one system to another, it is servers "talking" to servers, software "talking" to software. Whether your software is running in-house or is being hosted by a hosting vendor, the integration should be similar. Your options would be whether you would like the info "real-time" or an "end-of-day" feed. An experienced hosting company has probably set up their servicing solution to run with a number of Core Systems. If they do not currently run on a specific Core System, they should have the experience to still offer a helpful solution.
Question 5: What does it cost?
Answer: It depends? With ABT for example the cost of the software is covered in the hosting. This saves a great deal of up front costs. A hosted solution provides other savings as well because the hosting company is also paying for the hardware, the software to run the hardware environment, space in a "data center", personnel to run the data center environment, and qualified personnel who know the servicing platform and can provide your team technical support. The cost is generally 25% to 45% less than if you were to run the system(s) yourself.
Remember if you were to host a system yourself, you need to consider adding IT staff to handle the software (note: you will want a person who understands mortgage software is a great help, since they will be called upon to run last minute reports, manage updates, and train support personnel). When hosting the software internally you need to budget for purchasing and then updating hardware/software licenses as needed for your hosting environment, compliance with the stringent requirements of updates, back-up and Disaster Recovery, as well as fielding support calls from the Mortgage staff.
Summary:
Hosted services are gaining momentum, and whether you call it cloud computing, Hosted Services, or Virtual Mortgage Desktop it makes a lot of sense to partner with an experienced hosting team.
ABT
What do the folks from Access Business Technologies do when they aren't hosting Mortgage Software for their clients???? Note to our clients: We still had our "after hours" support team and other team members available to handle any issues at the corporate office in Folsom CA.
On September 17th, a group of warriors (Team PowerCore) from ABT, went to the mountains. Not for an ordinary hike, but to take on one of the toughest events offered on the continent...The Tough Mudder.
Tough Mudder is a series of obstacle course competitions that bill themselves as “probably the toughest one day event on the planet.” According to the New York Times. The “race” has partnered with the charity The Wounded Warrior Project, which helps wounded servicemen and women.
Tough Mudder NorCal raised more money for the Wounded Warrior Project than any other event to date. Thanks to all who donated and to the Marines along the course. http://toughmudder.com/events/norcal2011/
The ABT team ready for adventure. 
The 11 mile course started at the bottom of what turned out to be a long climb.
When they reach the top the participants will have climbed 2300 feet in elevation.
As if that wasn't enough, the Tough Mudder course designers threw in all types of obstacles.
Hours later the group came back together to celebrate a great finish to a long and grueling day.
Congratulations Team.
Go ABT
Access Business Technologies was again invited to exhibit at Harland's User Conference "Connections 2011", held at the Gaylord National at National Harbor,
MD.
At the conference's opening session Harland representatives mentioned they had a substantial increase in attendees over the year before. I would say that was accurate judging by the amount of people stopping by our booth. We presented our latest offerings in internet delivered, mortgage solutions:
PowerCore 3.0 Beta was shown. This latest version of ABT's delivery software allows users to safely access their hosted software residning in our secure data centers. It provides the ultimate in user convience including multi-screen viewing and solid printer access.
ABT's core hosted Harland product for the last 11 years has been "ServicingDirector" mortgage loan servicing software. We have been providing Credit Unions and Banks this fully hosted mortgage servicing platform for years. To this we have added hosting for Harland's E3 product as well. This mortgage loan origination software system was built years ago to allow users an integrated mortgage solution. These two products move a mortgage loan from origionation all the way through servicing. ABT has been approached by several current users who have asked us to analyze this product and include it in ABT's hosted solutions.
ABT's own PowerCore Due Diligence Software was being shown as well. This new and unique "Web Based" product is the latest due diligence product available. It is currently being used by institutions to perform and identify inaccuracies within loan portfolios.
We appreciate the opportunity to meet our current clients at this event and introduce ABT to new folks who are looking for the solutions we offer for managing
their mortgage software. We hope all of the attendees had as great time as we did. To the winner of the personal video recorder we gave away, have fun
capturing memories.
See you next year,
ABT
Just returned from DMD's user conference...Wow, what a busy 3 days. They covered topics such as Compliance/Closing, Secondary Marketing, the Origination Process, Underwriting, Funding/Quality Assurance and finishing up with Delivery to Investors. Their conference has grown from the first time ABT was
invited as a vendor. If I recall correctly, there were maybe two of us (vendors) there. This year 20 of the major names in mortgage software and support services attended, each organization showing their latest advancements in mortgage systems. The event was very well attended, with users getting many opportunities to advance their DMD product knowledge. There were breakout sessions, core training opportunities and a huge emphasis on taking time to network with other users, providing insight on how they utilize the DMD product suite. The conference 
wound up with a fun night at HAZE one of the great night clubs there at the Aria resort.
This is a great conference offering many opportunities for industry education as well as a forum to compare your processes with those of your peers.
ABT has worked with DMD for over 7 years, hosting their product software in our secure data environments and delivering the system back to the end user with our latest version of PowerCore.
We would like to announce our latest data center roll out. This data center hosting environment was launched specifically to provide an even better user experience for our Midwest and East Coast customers.
It is expected this new data center will grow ABT’s East Coast customer base by providing ABT’s brand of excellent user experience, system reliability and customer service. ABT provides hosting for the mortgage industry leading software vendors; Calyx Software, DMD DataTrac, Ellie Mae Encompass and Harland Financial Services E3 and Servicing Director. With this hosting environment our Midwest and East clients will experience even faster access and response times.
“Our customers rely on ABT to maintain and deliver their software flawlessly. The user experience is everything” says ABT’s President Justin Kirsch. “Over the last 3 years ABT has seen a steady increase in the number of customers in the Midwest and Eastern United States. This Data Center represents months of analysis looking for a data center location that was the best fit for ABT’s future growth in those areas”.
ABT’s newest hosting environment has class leading security, a solid infrastructure providing system redundancy for cooling, power, and ISP carriers. The location is perfect for our Midwest and East Coast customers because it sits directly on one of the major internet intersections in the country.
We will begin moving current customers into this facility immediately.
Week before last, ABT was again part of a very successful Harland Clarke User Group Conference. Our
booth was right in the heart of the Vendor's Meeting Hall (ABT hosts Harland's mortgage software "E3" and "Servicing Director") at Disney's Coronado Resort and Conference Center in Orlando. 
Feedback from folks visiting our booth, despite the "last minute" change in venue, Harland ran a smooth and insightful conference. These conferences are a great opportunity for the organizations using Harland Clarke products, to attend product specific classes. These classes allow users from different companies to not only get updates to their products, but also interact with other users. From the conversations generated between users, this type of interaction proves to be very useful. If you did not see the class you wanted, respond to the "post conference" survey they sent out and let them know. Another option is to send a note to Stacey Leone at Harland Financial Service's corporate office. Her e-mail is stacey.leone@harlandfs.com .
After the days of classes, it was time to relax. 
The celebration Harland Clarke threw on the last night of the conference was a hoot. Live music, dancing, plus quite a few other activities, there was something for everyone.
The ABT team had a great time as always. If we did not meet this year, I look forward to meeting you at the conference next year.
I was recently ran into someone who's job title was "Software Consultant". "Why would someone need a software consultant?" I asked, "Doesn't that normally fall on the IT department?". I was told that in most cases it did. But in some cases this may not be the best way to bring on critical software for an organizations. The following list gives a few reasons why a Software Consultant may help a company make better software decisions:
- Software solution requirements needed by the "business group" have not been properly analyzed. Not enough details or user expectations were uncovered in order to make a decision. Perhaps due to the next reason.
- The IT team does not have the "bandwidth" to devote appropriate time to the project. They are so busy with current projects and demands that analyzing software is not the priority.
- There may be a disconnect between the end users desire for specific business processes and the IT team's "system environment" constraints.
- The IT department's desire for retaining control may limit their objectivity in looking at "hosted" software solutions
- In some cases there are communication issues between departments ("trust" between departments may not be part of the corporate culture), while hopefully this is not the case with your company, this type of situation does exist.
The group this individual works for, starts their process by performing a very detailed analysis of expectations expected from the software. This task involves all of individuals who will be working with the software (users and IT). A list is made. gathering user expectations and process vision. With this information they objectively analyze software options available in the marketplace. This list along with the reasons for their inclusion are presented to a steering committee. They schedule demo's of each software and help with the evaluation process. They will then help facilitate the decision process.
This discussion was enlightening for me. Our company is vendor neutral and do not suggest mortgage software solutions. In most cases, our prospects/clients have usually already decided what mortgage software they will be using. If they are still looking, I can suggest barriers they may be hitting and provide tactics that will help them make a more informed decision.
How do you choose your business software tools?
- Give the project to IT?
- Strictly a cost decision?
- Always pick the industry leader?
- Suggestions from peers?