Sept/Oct 2021 Reverse Mortgage Magazine

Moving Forward Align Customer Expectations with Service Servicers Must Be Set Up for Success By Steve Irwin, President, National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association “The ultimate source of information about human preferences is human behavior…” —Stuart Russell, author, Human Compatible: AI and the Problem of Control CUSTOMERS CONTINUALLY RAISE the bar on what they expect from their service providers. We all look to have what we want, and need, faster, better and cheaper. In fact, we operate in the times referred to by the Marketing Guru Regis McKenna as the age of the “never satisfied customer.” We are fooling ourselves if we don’t think this axiom doesn’t also refer to reverse mortgage borrowers, their families and their trusted advisers. A sure-fire recipe for exacerbating customer dissatis- faction is misaligning the customers’ expectations with the actual service that can be delivered. Often there is a disconnect between the expectations of a reverse mortgage client when their loan is transferred to the loan servicing team and the policies and procedures that are required of that loan servicing team. It is incumbent on us all to clearly, and in the plainest language possible, define and describe how the loan works and the responsibilities the borrower carries into the reverse mortgage transaction. The expectations of the client need to be properly set against the service that can be delivered to that client. Fortunately, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has created its “You Have a Reverse Mortgage: Know Your Rights and Responsibilities” guide. This helpful tool, from an independent voice, can help us all properly set expectations. We should share this document at every chance we get. It should be used as a “leave-behind” and be included in the closing package. It should be shared with referral partners and prospects. It should become part of the larger understanding of our product category. (This guide is available to download for free through the CFPB website.) NRMLA has also developed materials its mem- bers can download for free ( reversemortgage.org/about/ consumer-guides ). Our “What You Need to Know About Your HECM After Closing” and our “What Do I Do When My Loan Is Due?” guides further serve to properly set clients’ expecta- tions after the loan closes and is transferred to the “admin- istration” phase. Please share these guides with your clients, their family members and their trusted advisers. I would urge you to let us know if there are any additional materials we could develop that might help properly set client expec- tations, or if any of these existing guides could use refining. The more we do to align customer expectations with the realities of the loan servicing life cycle, the better our industry perceptions will be. It’s hard enough to meet the ever-changing needs of the customer. Customer expectations need to be established in a way that sets your servicer up for success. Steve Irwin REVERSE MORTGAGE / SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2021 5