Significance

• Mortgage packagers help lending offices in the UK run more efficiently. After a customer applies for a mortgage loan, the broker or loan officer turns over the customer documents (that is, pay stubs; P60s, the UK equivalent of the U.S. W-2 form; and existing mortgage paperwork) to the mortgage packager. While the broker continues to solicit for applications, the packager gets to work making sure the documents will qualify the customer for the loan.
  
  

Function

• The main function of a mortgage packager is to verify data. This means checking a customer's debt-to-income ratio. A DIR represents a customer's ability to repay a mortgage. It also means verifying the market value of a home (either online or with a full appraisal). Last, mortgage packagers will look at a borrower's credit and make sure the score will qualify him for the loan.
  
  

Effects

• A mortgage packager does not solicit new clients. She strictly deals with existing applications and customers. Sometimes the packager does not even deal with customers. If she runs into a problem with the documents, she will alert the loan officer who, in turn, will contact the customer. The effect of this process is that the loan officer is strictly a salesperson--she will not spend any time verifying documents.
  
  

Benefits

• The mortgage packager also makes the underwriter's job easier. In the United States, the job of the underwriter is to verify documents and make sure a customer is qualified. If a company has a strong mortgage packager, the underwriter will need to spend far less time reviewing applications--which means a faster turnaround time for loan approvals.
  
  

Considerations

• The United States has a similar position in some offices. This position is called a mortgage processor. These people undertake similar tasks, but also contribute to the sales aspect of lending.