Municipal Credit Union Excels in the “Financial Capital of the World”

Sponsored by D+H.

Competing for members in the largest city in the country is not easy. With 400,000-plus members, $2.5 billion in assets, and 21 branches, the 100-year-old Municipal Credit Union, New York, is doing just fine. One of the keys to its success is a mortgage lending business that is supported end to end—from loan boarding to pay off—with a set of lending solutions from CUES Supplier member D+H. Its tech-savvy membership expects 247 digital access and the ability to self-service whenever possible, something the D+H solution helps the credit union deliver and an important factor behind the 25 percent growth in mortgage applications Municipal CU has experienced since deployment.

Passionate Advocate Leads Initiative to Centralize Systems and Extend Self-Service

When people make pivotal decisions in their lives, their credit unions and banks are often involved. Municipal CU is proud that its members place this type of trust in them.

Over the years, as Municipal CU grew its lending business—for auto, mortgage and personal load services—the complexities of servicing all of the different loan types also expanded. Recognizing the importance of constantly evolving its operations and services to deliver continual best-in-class member experiences, Municipal CU’s President/CEO Kam Wong, CMA CFM CCE, and Chief Credit Officer Norman Kohn, both CUES members, wanted to optimize the credit union’s lending management systems and processes.

To lead the charge, they tapped the CU’s vice president of mortgage operations Anie Akpe-Lewis. Apke-Lewis oversees the credit union's $610-million mortgage business.

“Our members want 24-7 digital access and the ability to self-service when possible, all without coming into a branch,” she explains.

Loan Servicing from Start to Finish

The initiative left the starting blocks in 2010. The objective was to find a technology solution that would centralize loan servicing for Municipal CU’s mortgage portfolio. “We wanted a servicing solution that would support the entire loan process—from loan boarding through payoff—as well as offer members various self-service options,” Akpe-Lewis says.

She and her team found the answer in D+H. “The integrated portfolio of solutions and long-term vision and roadmap from D+H resonated with our team,” she relates.

Servicing Director from D+H was the first solution the Municipal CU team deployed. One of the features the team liked best is the fact that it is a turnkey solution with no custom coding or operator invention required.

“Servicing Director is broken into different sections that align with our different departments, making it easy for our staff in each department to find what they need in the tool,” Akpe-Lewis says. “Our members also like the self-service capabilities powered by the Customer Self-Service module. They can access loan information themselves and have access to their histories and the ability to request payoff statements.” Beyond improving member engagement and satisfaction, the self-service capabilities have also helped Municipal CU reduce mortgage-related call volume to its call center.

Automating loan servicing tasks and ensuring full compliance with risks were critical requirements as well. Specifically, new laws requiring lenders to offer borrowers various loan restructuring options—so as to avert defaulting on their loans—can be managed proactively with Servicing Director. “We’ve seen loan delinquencies decrease through activities such as lowering interest rates, offering multiple rates, or extending the term of a loan,” Akpe-Lewis reports. “This is a win-win for Municipal CU and our members.”

Next-Generation Mortgage Loan Origination

With a comprehensive loan servicing solution in place, Municipal CU turned its attention to mortgage lending operations. Specifically, the credit union wanted to maximize its process efficiencies so that its staff could focus on delivering optimal service experiences to members, something that has always been a core component of its charter.

“Finding a solution that would automate all of our various workflows while complying with all of the different lending regulations—including remaining in compliance with the introduction of new regulations and changes in existing ones—was a tall order,” Akpe-Lewis notes. The credit union also has very high security standards and sought a solution that would provide a secure transactional and data storage environment. Municipal CU sought to give its members 247 self-service access to submit mortgage applications.

After evaluating various solutions in late 2014, Akpe-Lewis and her team settled on D+H once again. “The combination of MortgagebotPOS™ and MortgagebotLOS™ gives us an end-to-end mortgage loan origination solution—starting with the application and ending with post-closing activities,” she states. “It also seamlessly integrates into our Servicing Director deployment, thus extending the mortgage loan lifecycle all of the way through payoff.”

The solution is proving to be a big success. Members like the ability to apply for mortgage loans themselves. Since the deployment of Mortgagebot, Municipal CU has seen mortgage loan application submissions increase 25 percent. Members welcome the option to apply for loans regardless of the device in use—desktop, laptop, tablet or smartphone.

Additionally, streamlined processes allow loan specialists to differentiate the loan experience for members from other financial institutions. This enables them to focus on helping members navigate through the sometimes complex and anxiety-ridden loan origination process. “The paperless workflows that are powered by MortgagebotLOS save loan specialists even more time," Akpe says. “Digital documentation can be easily indexed, archived, searched and retrieved—by both staff and members since MortgagebotLOS is a cloud-based application. Not only do members have 247 access to their mortgage documentation, but our staff is more efficient.”

Beyond the Status Quo for Evolution and Growth

The relationship Municipal CU formed with D+H is delivering real dividends. And the results are expected to continue to multiply as the credit union adds more solutions from D+H.

“You choose technology providers for growth,” Akpe relates. “You don’t choose them for maintaining that status quo. We established a partnership with D+H on the basis of evolution and growth.”