By KIMBERLEY HAAS
Cloud-based technology is transforming warehouse lending by eliminating the need for internal system updates and ensuring new functions are available immediately.
This fall, leaders at SitusAMC announced that their warehouse lending system ProMerit is now accessible through a cloud-hosted, software-as-a-service platform that can install monthly release packages to deliver bug fixes and functional enhancements. This over-the-air delivery benefits clients by reducing costs and reliance on internal resources, they said.
ProMerit has been used by lenders for more than 35 years. Measured by volume, it has a 75% share of the warehouse lending market, company leaders say.
Rich Berg, SitusAMC senior director of warehouse and custodial technology, said in a statement that the updated platform was created and is managed by experts who understand the ins and outs of their product.
“Data security is of paramount importance to us and our clients,” he said.
Berg recently sat down with The Mortgage Note to talk about how the warehouse lending process is being transformed by cloud-based technology and some of the challenges their clients are facing.
Berg said that making ProMerit accessible through the cloud allows them to be much more agile when it comes to providing updates and support.
“The technology really eases the burden on both us and our clients. It makes it significantly easier for us to go through those deployments, and also for our clients to then get those enhancements, updates, features, and be able to reap those benefits much sooner than they would have in the past,” Berg said.
Berg said the market has been challenging for warehouse lenders for a number of reasons over the past few years, but costs and interest rates are currently a main concern.
“I think the biggest challenge is just costs. I think it’s costs of funds. It’s spreads, and pricing, and staffing. The market is kind of at a low now and has been slow for a while. Rates are high, so it’s difficult for warehouse lenders to find business and to lend money,” Berg said.
“What we’re trying to do on our end is just work with them from a technology perspective and make sure they have everything they need so that there’s no unnecessary unknowns that pop up from a risk perspective or anything from the technology side that would, in these times, cause them any issues or problems.”
Berg said they are also working on enhancements and features so when the market turns around, their clients will be able to grow without too many additional expenses.
According to the company’s website, more than 70 warehouse lenders are on the ProMerit platform, which has supported $11 trillion in funding in the last five years.
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