Expanded Guidelines Income Verification Type Enhancements
Optimal Blue is excited to release additional improvements to our support of Expanded Guidelines (Non-QM) products. The enhancements are focused on additional Income Verification Types, and we are confident that they will significantly benefit Optimal Blue’s lender and investor clients alike by enabling them to improve their suite of product offerings and be more competitive.
A new field called DSCR is being implemented as well as the addition of five income options to the existing Income Verification Type field. The DSCR field will allow users to enter a DSCR ratio that will determine eligibility and adjustment differences by ratio. It is important to remember that not all investors calculate the DSCR ratio the same. As you know, DSCR is a ratio of rental income to mortgage payment sometimes used to qualify borrowers for investment properties. Optimal Blue will use the DSCR ratio for eligibility and pricing determinations if the Income Verification Type selected is Investor - DSCR and the occupancy is investment. Once an Investor has been selected, you should confirm that the value entered for DSCR ratio was calculated using the method required for that investor.
The new Income Verification Type enumerations are listed below:
- 1099: 1 Year
- 1099: 2 Year
- P&L: 1 Year
- P&L: 2 Year
- No Income Verification
Over the last few months our Content Team reviewed all Optimal Blue supported expanded guideline programs and worked closely with our investors to determine if there was a way to consolidate product offerings with the new income options. As a result, we were able to significantly reduce the number of products that need to be supported. For example, if a product previously allowed for both 1099 and P&L, 2 different products were created. With the changes, only a single product scripted using the income verification type field is required. This will have a significant impact on product set up, maintenance and will improve the search results returned to your users.
Because we understand how much effort is involved in changes like this, we will be hosting a webinar on March 27, 2023, at 12:00 PM CT to help you prepare for these improvements. Our goal is to make rollouts like this as seamless as possible! Please do not miss the opportunity to attend and ensure you are ready to hit the ground running.
Timeline for Rollout
On March 27, 2023, Optimal Blue will be releasing new versions of EG products impacted by the new income verification options in your site in an unrolled-out state to allow time for you to configure the new products. All replacement products are built in the Expanded Guidelines section of the product tree and appended with “- NEW”. Also, the new DSCR field will be available on all client config site forms so that you can begin scripting and testing any rules related to the new DSCR variable and Income Verification Type enumerations.
Optimal Blue is currently planning a system wide release for April 14, 2023, that will include adding the new DSCR and Income Verification Type enumerations to your Lender forms. There will be more information regarding the April 14th release coming in the next two weeks. Please Do NOT roll out products with “- NEW” until after the release and you have confirmed the new changes are available on your Lender form. Once confirmed, you will need to roll-out the “- NEW” versions of the EG programs.
On April 15, 2023, all old EG versions of products will be discontinued and no longer offered in the Optimal Blue system. Customers utilizing the old content for proprietary products have six months from April 15, 2023, to reconfigure sourcing for eligibility/adjustment/pricing. Discontinued products will reflect “DISC 04/15/2023” if the product name has not been overlaid and will only return in sell side searches.
The following investors will have replacement products released:
