Written by Debra Taylor, as originally published in The Reverse Review.

Our industry has been well-appraised of the policy changes surrounding Financial Assessment and non-borrowing spouses. There are many aspects to each new rule and they affect both originators and servicers alike. Origination and servicing teams are aggressively working to meet fast-approaching deadlines to complete personnel training in order to understand system upgrades that will accommodate new data fields, establish procedures for tracking or assessing a borrower’s ability to pay taxes and insurance, and determine policies for working with the non-borrowing spouses. Both groups are scrambling and many have questions about the regulatory impact of these new guidelines. What expectations can we set for each other—and for the borrower?

Financial Assessment will impact originators and servicers, and each team views the new rules from their unique perspectives. Originators have been reassessing how to complete the loan package and approve borrowers, while servicers are approaching things from their long-term servicing perspective. Servicers are charged with addressing questions like: When the set-aside funds run out, and the borrower doesn’t make a tax payment, what options are available to assist the borrower? Do we have the information needed from the point of origination to help us through all phases of the loan’s servicing?

Originators collect data and information from the borrower in order to underwrite and approve the loan. If sales doesn’t understand why servicing may need a piece of information later in the process, how can they be expected to explain to the borrower the need to obtain the information?

A borrower may be likely to push back when asked to provide information if the loan officer is unable to explain why it may be needed years from now (or upon the borrower’s death). Borrowers are becoming increasingly savvy and have likely been through the mortgage process a few times. They know what to expect and the type of information that is normally asked. This product is different and has different requirements. Product education at every level is key to industry success. As an industry, we meet and discuss general changes in regulations. This makes time and space for originators to discuss with servicers their frustrations in understanding the borrower’s “Why?” We can and should help each other.

I once worked for a large financial institution that had very specialized departments. The company never expected all personnel to know all processes. If a client had a question about trusts, investments or a mortgage, the client’s representative would call the department that specialized in that area. An associate from this specialized department would then walk the client and representative through the “how” of the process. The client (and representative) would leave the meeting feeling they had been provided excellent care and specialized information. If excellent service and information is provided, clients rarely get upset when the process stops and calls are made to an expert in that area.

If our industry were to employ a similar process, origination would feel free to call servicing experts and speak with a very knowledgeable individual to answer questions about the hows and whys of loan servicing. Clients would not only feel they were well serviced from both the origination and servicing sides, they would believe their money and property were in knowledgeable hands and safe care.

The reality is that sales and service departments are so busy handling this fast-changing product that there doesn’t seem to be time to look to the other side to collaborate. I’ve been guilty of reviewing new regulations or an upcoming proposal and thinking, “This is an origination function and it doesn’t pertain to me,” and I move right along. I’ve come to understand that, had I taken the time to review the change from both perspectives, and the possible impacts later in the life of the loan, I may have been enlightened and better able to service our borrowers and ensure that regulatory obligations were met.

Each of us is trying our best to provide excellent service to our borrowers and their experience will be enhanced when sales and service work together before implementation of a new compliance regulation or process. We need to ask each other how our new processes will impact each other and how it translates to the borrower. If we work as allies, non-compliance will be rare and our borrowers will be well-served.

2015 is shaping up to be another challenging and changing year in the world of reverse mortgages. Some of the biggest impacts to our processes will be realized this year. Taking a short break to discuss the changes with each other will not only make new processes smoother to implement, it could help make every borrower’s experience more satisfying and memorable.