Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC (Carrington) recently announced plans to further sharpen its focus on reaching and serving “underserved” borrowers (typically those in the sub-640 FICO score range) – a sizable market that is largely ignored by today’s lenders. To accelerate and further enhance its ability to give this market the attention it deserves, Carrington has lowered its minimum credit requirement to a FICO score of 550, and expanded its guidelines on a number of FHA, VA and USDA loan programs, extending eligibility to more property types and reducing overlays.
In addition to reducing its minimum FICO requirements, Carrington has added to and enhanced a number of its primary product offerings to further complement this strategy and increase its accessibility for the underserved market. Interested real estate industry professionals can contact their local Carrington branch or visit www.CarringtonHomeLoans.com/branch for details.
Brokers and banks can contact their Carrington account executive for information – or, to establish a wholesale lending relationship, visit www.CarringtonWholesale.com/become-approved or call (866) 453-2400.
An estimated one in three consumers has a FICO credit score below 650 according to industry experts. For these consumers, and the brokers and agents working with them, obtaining access to appropriate financing options can be a challenge – one that Carrington is uniquely equipped to handle. While Carrington will continue to provide a wide breadth of product and support to borrowers across all ranges of the credit spectrum through its retail lending division, the company will increase its attention and focus on providing service to that underserved segment of the market where it can make the most impact – and where its core competencies are obviously needed.
“Effectively meeting the needs of clients in the underserved market requires the ability to both originate quality loans and appropriately service them after the fact,” says Carrington Mortgage Services Mortgage Lending Division Executive Vice President Ray Brousseau. “While that combination of capabilities is atypical among most lenders, at Carrington, it’s in our DNA! Both Carrington’s lending platform and specialty servicing business were created to serve this particular market segment. That uniquely positions us as the lender of choice for this population of borrowers, and the mortgage brokers and real estate agents who work with them. Our message is clear: You can count on Carrington to serve the underserved and get the tough loans done right.”
Effective April 1, 2014, Carrington will eliminate conventional and jumbo loans from its wholesale product line and limit its acceptance of wholesale submissions with FICO scores above 680. However, Carrington will continue to serve veterans with VA loans across the credit spectrum. The company feels strongly that this move is necessary for appropriately allocating its resources to provide optimum support to borrowers in the underserved market.
To enhance the company’s outreach to the underserved market and build awareness of Carrington’s ability to work effectively with these borrowers, the company has launched a robust, multi-faceted marketing strategy to inform consumers as well as industry professionals. A variety of initiatives – from Internet leads and online advertising to Webinars and community events – have been incorporated to increase brand recognition among these audiences and educate all key stakeholders about the company’s vision.
Empowering Borrowers Through Education
As advocates of borrower education and in support of the company’s commitment to meeting the needs of the underserved market, Carrington developed MyLoanDetail, a proprietary online loan review resource designed to improve the financial literacy of its customers by walking every customer through the details of their loan. This education initiative will help to ensure borrower understanding of loan terms and responsibilities. Carrington will require all of its customers to complete the MyLoanDetail online education prior to funding.
About Carrington Mortgage Services – Mortgage Lending Division
Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC (Carrington) is a residential retail and wholesale lending subsidiary of Carrington Holding Company, LLC. Founded in 2007, the company is based in Santa Ana, California and is an equal housing opportunity lender licensed to originate loans in 43 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico with an experienced team focused on producing high quality loans and error-free transactions. Carrington’s advanced technology platform and high-touch customer service provide superior loan origination experiences for consumers, while its commitment to borrower education and use of its proprietary online loan review resource, MyLoanDetail, enhance the company’s ability to responsibly extend credit to borrowers – especially those in the underserved market.
For more information, visit www.CarringtonHomeLoans.com.
