LMCU increased originations, expanded its referral network, and recruited ideal talent using iEmergent’s market intelligence insights
Lake Michigan Credit Union (LMCU) is a top credit union with 59 branches, more than $12 billion in assets, and over 534,000 members. LMCU prides itself on equipping its loan originators (LOs) with competitive loan products and digital mortgage tools that provide an unmatched mortgage experience for members.
In late 2021, as the mortgage market transitioned from one dominated by refinances to one centered on purchase lending, LMCU’s sales managers needed a way to identify untapped purchase loan opportunities, recruit top LOs, track sales growth and measure loan performance as compared to competitors in its service regions.
Seizing Opportunity
One solution checked all the boxes and more: iEmergent. iEmergent’s mortgage market intelligence helps credit unions grow by providing a quantitative understanding of the home financing needs of the communities they serve. iEmergent’s flagship solution, Mortgage MarketSmart, brings together robust volume forecasts, competitive intelligence, external data sources, and dynamic maps to give credit union mortgage teams the tools they need to quantify and act on diverse lending and market growth opportunities.
LMCU’s vice president of mortgage strategy and 30-year mortgage industry veteran John Harpst had this to say:
“I use Mortgage MarketSmart often. Whenever I hear about an interesting mortgage trend or market forecast, I’ll open up the platform and within seconds find where that opportunity exists in LMCU’s markets. The interactive maps and data visualizations allow me to view a ‘big picture’ of the market and drill down to the opportunity in individual neighborhoods so LMCU can manage mortgage strategy more efficiently and accurately.”
Outstanding results
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Quick access to market intelligence: iEmergent integrates and layers data from HMDA, courthouse records, NMLS records, real-time property data from multiple listing services (MLS), and other reliable sources. As a result, LMCU no longer has to wait for third-party data updates. Instead, LOs use Mortgage MarketSmart to generate reports in just a few clicks—from annual to daily, by individual, company, or branch.
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Expansion into untapped markets: Using iEmergent, LMCU increased its diverse lending initiatives in underserved markets, including low- to moderate-income (LMI) households. “Mortgage MarketSmart has allowed us to increase business and serve even more aspiring homeowners by pinpointing exactly where to find LMI opportunity in our market,” said Harpst.
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New business relationships: LMCU used iEmergent to grow its partner network and nurture referral relationships. Using Mortgage MarketSmart, LMCU easily identified and connected with the real estate agents most active in the specific LMI markets that LMCU was targeting.
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Targeted originator recruiting: iEmergent’s LO production data and powerful analytics empowered LMCU to generate ranking reports that quantitatively identified the best-fit originators through key performance indicators like volume and types of loans closed, turn times, employer history, and more.
For more on LMCU’s experience with iEmergent, read the full case study.