Real Estate Technology, Mortgage and Lending
PRnewswire | July 26, 2023
FirstClose™, Inc., a leading fintech provider of data and workflow solutions for mortgage and home equity lenders nationwide, announced today that its home equity settlement services ordering module within FirstClose Equity is now integrated with Calyx Software's Point® loan origination system.
Through the integration, Point users can seamlessly originate HELOCs and home equity loans within their LOS and complete the application through the closing process faster than the industry average of 45 to 60 days. FirstClose's one-of-a-kind home equity solution reduces operational touchpoints to elevate the overall customer experience for borrowers. It also enables lenders to automate data collection, verification, and settlement services ordering.
FirstClose's order management module is currently used by more than 200 lenders nationwide to automate back-office manual processes. FirstClose's one-click ordering technology with the ability to modify settlement providers will enable Calyx Point lenders to reduce risk, grow their overall business, and position themselves better for continued growth and success in this surging home equity market.
"As a customer-first company, we are always looking to offer our lenders access to like-minded companies that provide simple solutions to real-world challenges our customers face," said Juan Villegas, Director of National Sales at Calyx Software. "We're proud to be integrated with FirstClose and to be able to help our clients streamline their home equity lending operations."
"Mortgage rates are rising; homeowners are staying in their homes longer and they are in a much better financial position than ever before. All these pieces point to HELOCs and HELs as the right products for the times," said Tedd Smith, Chief Executive Officer at FirstClose. "Having our order management module within Point will give Calyx users a simple and efficient way to capitalize on this growing market opportunity and stand out amongst the crowd by offering a significantly enhanced customer experience."
About Calyx
Calyx® is an established provider of compliant mortgage software solutions used by banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, and brokerages nationwide. The company's easy-to-use technology, including its online borrower interview, loan origination systems and secure electronic signature software, is designed to streamline, integrate and optimize all phases of the loan process for customers of various sizes, workflows, channels and complexities. Combined with its extensive network of integrated partners, Calyx products deliver a true digital mortgage solution that maximizes profitability and enhances the customer experience.
About FirstClose
Headquartered in Austin, Texas, FirstClose, Inc. provides fintech solutions to HELOC and mortgage lenders nationwide. The company's mission is to increase profitability and reduce cost for mortgage lenders. FirstClose makes this possible through offering systems and relationships that enable lenders to assist the lender's borrowers more effectively, reduce closing costs, and ultimately shorten closing times.
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Real Estate Advice
PRnewswire | August 16, 2023
Zenerate ,an innovative AI startup in the Proptech space, has entered into a strategic partnership with SoLa Impact ,the leading private real estate developer of affordable housing in California. Zenerate has developed a powerful platform that employs generative design, artificial intelligence and advanced data analytics to optimize the feasibility analysis process for real estate projects, reducing turnaround time and maximizing development returns.
In a groundbreaking move to revolutionize the affordable housing sector, SoLa Impact has partnered with Zenerate, to streamline and automate the feasibility analysis process for their affordable and modular housing developments. The collaboration brings cutting-edge AI technology to the modular construction industry and dramatically accelerates the speed of planning, configuration, design, and the permit approval process for a wide range of SoLa's affording housing projects.
SoLa Impact has been at the forefront of addressing the affordable housing crisis in Los Angeles over the last decade, consistently demonstrating its commitment to creating sustainable, community-focused housing solutions. SoLa currently has over 35 projects with almost 3,000 units at various stages of construction, the majority of which are dedicated to affordable housing. With the increasing demand in the affordable segment, the need for swift and accurate feasibility, configuration, and design analysis has become paramount in the real estate development landscape.
Martin Muoto, the Founder and CEO of SoLa Impact, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, "We are thrilled to collaborate with Zenerate in our mission to dramatically scale the development and delivery of high-quality affordable housing in California. By leveraging Zenerate's cutting-edge technology combined with our proprietary standardization processes, we can bring significantly more units to market more cost-effectively and more quickly, with the vast majority of our projects to house people that are currently homeless and living in tents. Equally important, these are units that are an order-of-magnitude more energy efficient than the aging housing stock they are replacing. All units are fully electric, use water-efficient fixtures, and have ENERGY STAR-certified appliances, dramatically reducing GHG emissions while providing cost savings to California's low-income Black and brown communities."
The integration of Zenerate's software into SoLa Impact's modular operations will facilitate data-driven decision-making, allowing for a more efficient and comprehensive evaluation of potential development sites, construction costs, and market demand. By automating the feasibility and design analysis, SoLa Impact's team will be able to evaluate more sites, repurpose vacant and sub-optimized locations, and build for maximum density and affordability.
The Co-Founder and CEO of Zenerate, Benji Shin, echoed Muoto's sentiments, emphasizing Zenerate's commitment to providing housing more quickly and affordably by leveraging Artificial Intelligence, particularly expert systems for code compliance and machine learning for rapid massing, configuration, and design. "We are thrilled to partner with SoLa Impact, whose deep commitment to creating sustainable, scalable, and affordable housing aligns perfectly with our mission. By automating key parts of the feasibility, configuration, and eventually, the permitting process, we aim to enable developers to run thousands of financial and design scenarios instantly, ultimately contributing to the advancement of affordable housing initiatives."
The innovative approach undertaken by SoLa Impact and Zenerate is expected to have a significant impact on the speed and scale of affordable housing development in California, starting in Los Angeles – the largest affordable housing market in the United States with the most acute homeless problem – and then expanding to other local municipalities, and eventually, other states.
About SoLa Impact
SoLa Impact is a family of real estate funds with a double bottom line strategy focused on preserving, rehabbing, and building high-quality affordable housing in low- and moderate-income communities. SoLa's proven track record leverages data-driven social impact strategies to deliver superior financial returns. SoLa Impact's fourth fund, the Black Impact Fund, has invested $1 billion in affordable housing in Southern California. SoLa Impact was ranked as the 7th fastest-growing minority-led private company by Inc. 500 and was awarded the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) Emerging Manager ESG Award for SoLa's demonstrated ability to deliver on its commitment to positive changes in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) matters.
AboutZenerate
Zenerate, a member company of Born2Gl obal Centre, is a venture-backed innovative AI startup in the real estate development space, providing consulting services and web-based products for feasibility studies; Z-maps is a real estate development map that weekly updates all the latest projects in Southern California, and Zenerate App is a design automation tool that generates development scenarios with floor plans in real time for feasibility studies.
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Real Estate Technology, Home and Design
Businesswire | July 04, 2023
Alarm.com has partnered with California-based builder New Home Co. to power a suite of innovative smart home technology services for new homeowners as part of the launch of the updated smart home program called EVO. New Home Co. buyers will receive an EVO base system that includes a 7” touchscreen smart home panel, Alarm.com video doorbell, smart thermostat, smart garage opener, smart ready switches, and more, all accessible through a single app.
In 2022, New Home Co. built 790 homes, and the business has plans to aggressively expand its footprint into new markets this year with this new integrated package. The collaboration was driven by Alarm.com’s Builder Program, an award-winning initiative that facilitates new partnerships between builders and Alarm.com service providers, who will play an integral role throughout.
“We are excited to partner with New Home Co. as the power behind their suite of innovative services to offer new homeowners the best in smart home technology. Our platform provides a seamless way for builders, like New Home Co., to build and sell homes while providing a world-class smart home solution for their buyers,” said Shawn Barry, Alarm.com Vice President, Strategic Sales. “We continue to see homebuyers’ enthusiasm for smart home technology grow and we believe that our service providers offer a huge advantage for builders looking to rapidly deploy smart home solutions.”
“Through our partnership with Alarm.com, we’re offering an array of modern digital amenities to provide our buyers the systems that best meet their lifestyle needs,” said Megan Eltringham, Corporate Vice President of Marketing for New Home Co. “We’re thrilled to have Alarm.com join us in bringing the most intelligent and well-designed homes to the market.”
New Home Co. is a western regional builder and real estate development company headquartered in Irvine, Calif. It has divisions within select growth markets in California, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. New Home Co. is one of the most awarded homebuilders in the United States. It was named 2019 Builder of the Year by Professional Builder and is a multi-year recipient of “The Eliant” for providing the Best Overall Customer Experience in North America in the Eliant Homebuyers’ Choice Awards. New Home Co. has won hundreds of awards in the homebuilding industry for its design and planning excellence, dozens of “Community of the Year” awards, and was recognized five straight years for creating the best community or master plan in all the United States. For more information, visit NewHomeCo.com.
Alarm.com-powered systems are professionally installed and monitored and are customized for each home and family. For more information on the broader Alarm.com ecosystem of products and services, visit https://alarm.com. For more information about the Alarm.com Builder Program, visit https://alarm.com/builder.
About Alarm.com
Alarm.com is the leading platform for the intelligently connected property. Millions of consumers and businesses depend on Alarm.com's technology to manage and control their property from anywhere. Our platform integrates with a growing variety of Internet of Things (IoT) devices through our apps and interfaces. Our security, video, access control, intelligent automation, energy management, and wellness solutions are available through our network of thousands of professional service providers in North America and around the globe. Alarm.com's common stock is traded on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ALRM. For more information, please visit alarm.com.
AboutNew Home Co.
New Home Co. is a new generation homebuilder focused on the design, construction and sale of innovative and consumer-driven homes in Southern California, Northern California, Arizona & Colorado. Founded on the belief that first and foremost, we are in the people business. Our employees are the best in the industry and the dedication of our entire organization drives our success. In August 2014, we were exceptionally pleased to be recognized as one of the “Best Places to Work” by the Orange County Business Journal and a Top Workplace by the O.C. Register.
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