The 16th annual National Settlement Services Summit (NS3), slated for Sept. 1-3, will be highlighted in part by a pair of featured speakers from Washington regulators and the largest underwriter panel in the show’s history.
Department of Housing and Urban Development Deputy Secretary Brian Montgomery returns to NS3 for the second consecutive year. Last year, as Federal Housing Administration (FHA) commissioner, Montgomery previewed some of the work which later would come to fruition at the regulator.
“Making some common-sense structural changes on the policy side and some long overdue technology upgrades will make it easier for a lot of folks in this industry to do business with FHA,” Montgomery said in a conversation at the 2019 NS3.
“We are in the process of developing a modern single technology platform. The transformation will serve borrowers more efficiently and effectively in the modern world of mortgage finance that is increasingly digital and paperless. The new technology platform will ultimately provide lenders with a single portal to conduct business with FHA, from a loan application all the way to claims. It will enable electronic submission and document management, and will reduce errors and reliance on paper, as well as enhance processing speed. The new IT system will improve overall performance, data management and production. And we couldn’t be more excited about it.”
That work on technology would result in the launch of FHA Catalyst, a platform which contains the functionality to accept and process the electronic submission of case binders and supplemental claims in the single-family forward mortgage insurance program, enabling a streamlined process for mortgage lenders, servicers and FHA.
Montgomery announced Catalyst’s launch at a Mortgage Bankers Association event in May.
The other featured speaker for NS3 2020 will be Fannie Mae Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Douglas G. Duncan.
Duncan, who was named one of Bloomberg/BusinessWeek’s 50 Most Powerful People in Real Estate, will be making his first appearance at NS3.
In June’s Economic and Strategic Research Group report, Duncan talked about the group’s forecast for housing through the remainder of 2020.
“We also expect the extremely low mortgage rate environment to contribute to historically high levels of refinancing activity as household balance sheets and incomes improve,” he said in a press release detailing the report.
Another top highlight is the annual session featuring representatives of the top underwriters in the country, this year titled, “Underwriter Panel: Conversations from the C-Suite.”
This year’s version is the largest gathering of top underwriter executives in the 16-year history of NS3.
Title Resources CEO Scott McCall will make his first speaking appearance at NS3 as part of the panel, while CATIC President and CEO James Czapiga will be back on an underwriter panel for the first time since 2016.
The pair will be joined by Jeff Bluhm, executive vice president at Old Republic National Title Insurance Co.; Steven Day, president, national agency operations at the FNF Family of Companies; Tara Smith, group president, agency operations, Stewart; Patrick Stone, executive chairman and founder of WFG National Title Insurance Co.; and Evan Zanic, EVP, division president agency division at First American Title Insurance Co.
Together, the panelists will feature seven of the top 11 largest underwriters by market share in the country, according to the first quarter 2020 analysis by the American Land Title Association.
For more information on the 2020 NS3, including the agenda and a list of speakers, click here. You can register for NS3 online or click here to get information on how to register via mail, fax or phone.