Teach Employees "Why" and not just How"

Anyone who has been involved in escrow administration of a mortgage company will agree this is one of the most complex areas of loan servicing. Hundreds of thousands of tax bills, hazard insurance premiums, flood insurance premiums, PMI premiums, and MIP premiums are paid by escrow departments around the country every day. Millions of dollars are routinely disbursed from escrow accounts and remitted to tax offices, insurance companies, private mortgage insurance companies, and HUD. Millions of escrow accounts are analyzed each month and mortgage payments are increased or decreased. Changes to mortgage payments result in customer inquiries that must be researched and responded to.

It is no easy task to see that all real estate taxes are paid on time, that properties are adequately insured, and that PMI and MIP premiums are paid; and at the heart of escrow administration are escrow analyses. The staff members involved in conducting escrow analyses must be well trained and have a good understanding of all aspects of escrow servicing.

In addition to handling taxes, insurances, and analyses, the escrow department deals with loss drafts, PMI cancellations, and in some companies, customer inquiries. Also, they deal with lender placed insurance. If a property not previously in a SFHA is later determined to be in a SFHA, the escrow department notifies the customer that flood insurance is required. Flood insurance is placed on the property, if the customer fails to provide a policy. Many customers do not agree that their property is in a SFHA and resist purchasing a flood insurance policy. Lender placed insurance, whether it is flood or F&EC, frequently results in telephone calls and complaints from customers.

If all of this isn