TUKWILA, Wash. – With the aim of leveraging credit unions' economies of scale and making the mortgage servicing process more efficient, Prime Alliance Solutions, together with BECU, Orange County Teachers FCU, Patelco CU are creating Prime Alliance Credit Union Servicing LLC as a joint venture with Cenlar FSB, one of the leading mortgage loan servicers in the U.S. Prime Alliance Solutions President/CEO Joe Brancucci said the new company which will be run as an affiliate of Prime Alliance Solutions "will provide members with easier, more convenient access to their loan information using a higher standard of care than is generally available. Credit unions will have a credit union-owned solution that is feature-rich at a very competitive price-point, and it will allow credit unions to broaden and deepen their member relationships." Brancucci said the idea to form a servicing company came out of discussions he's had over the last several months with credit unions that are part of the Prime Alliance network that identified issues they felt needed to be addressed to improve the mortgage lending process for credit unions. Brancucci broke the mortgage process down to three parts: the first part he calls the "Dial Tone" because the member expects it to occur and isn't surprised when it happens, but there could be a problem if it doesn't. Part two is the "Wow" part – when the member calls for information or assistance, they're wowed by the experience or the way a particular problem is resolved. Part three, says Brancucci, is the part "nobody does well" and entails having a long-term relationship with the borrower managed better. By example, he says, if a member calls in to their credit union for a payoff figure, does the credit union representative just give them a figure, or do they talk with the member to learn why they want to pay off their mortgage and are their other lending opportunities the credit union can assist them with. "That part of the relationship isn't managed well," says Brancucci. "We saw no model in the marketplace that has all three components and makes it all economically feasible." By combining the resources and economics of BECU, Orange County FCU and Patelco, forming Prime Alliance Credit Union Servicing LLC becomes feasible, he says. Brancucci says the new servicing affiliate is another segment in the evolution of Prime Alliance Solutions. Last month the company formed Prime Alliance Services Co. LLC with its technology partner Dexma to bring greater efficiencies to the mortgage program by streamlining loan fulfillment. The company is expected to launch in 2005. Prior to that, in July, Prime Alliance and Prudential Northwest Realty LLC formed Prime Alliance Real Estate Services LLC to deliver relocation-type home buying and selling services to CU members. "Lenders have talked for years about the mortgage as a life-long relationship, rather than a 30-day event. Forming Prime Alliance CU Servicing is an important step in that direction," says Brancucci. Orange County Teachers FCU and BECU are Prime Alliance CU Servicing's first two customers. Brancucci says the plan is to begin servicing loans by year end and adds there are already several other credit unions in the Prime Alliance network who are queued up to have the new company service their loans starting next year. He adds that membership in the Prime Alliance network won't be a requirement for a CU to have its loans serviced by Prime Alliance CU Servicing. Pricing will be based on the size of a CU's mortgage portfolio, and there will be no differential between PA network members and non-members. -

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