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Equifax Workforce Solutions Pushes Partnerships With Lenders To The Next Level

By KIMBERLEY HAAS

Data-driven verification of income and employment provides immediacy, accuracy, and streamlines the loan approval process. At Equifax Workforce Solutions, they are positioning themselves to provide more than that, aiming to be a trusted advisor for lenders as they navigate modern challenges.

Chris Mock, vice president of mortgage verification services, said during a recent interview with The Mortgage Note that they are taking their partnerships with lenders to the next level by using feedback to make sure they are delivering the right products at the right time. Increasingly, lenders are including them in conversations when they are thinking about making changes to their systems.

“We are purposely taking a very proactive approach to make sure that we’re not just selling The Work Number. We’ve got a lot of individuals that have a significant number of years of experience in the mortgage industry,” Mock said.

The Work Number was launched in 1995 after a large employer realized their human resources team was spending too much time responding to verification requests. When an employee applied for a loan, a member of the HR team would have to get on the phone with the lender to confirm the income and employment information provided on the loan application. 

The Work Number was created to be a centralized resource verifiers could call to confirm income and employment information. Today, what started as an actual phone number has become a platform that is integrated with lenders. Data is available at all times at theworknumber.com.

As of Oct. 1, 3.8 million employers used The Work Number. The total number of employment records accessible for verifications was 716 million. 

“I’m grateful that we have the data, we have the data availability, and we have the integration for our clients. When they need us, we’re there,” Mock said.

But lenders face new challenges, including the fact that determining debt to income can be tricky to verify as more people have fluctuating incomes or multiple jobs as part of the gig economy. Mock said they can break down an applicant’s income to include base salary, overtime, and commissions.

Lenders can review an applicant’s income over the course of one, two, or three years, giving them a better view of noteworthy changes, Mock said.

“The verifications we provide can help lenders better understand the borrower and provide a complete financial picture for them so they can better calculate DTIs,” Mock said.

Advancements in technology have helped. Mock said that Equifax has been driving responsible artificial intelligence innovation for nearly a decade and has more than 100 approved patents supporting their approach to AI.

“At Equifax Workforce Solutions, we’re always looking for new ways to innovate and grow our technology. Because AI is a priority for our clients, it’s also top of mind for Equifax as we think about new products and solutions to serve our lending customers,” Mock said.

Total revenue for Equifax Workforce Solutions was $620 million in Q3 2024.