Stavvy, a fintech company at the intersection of lending and real estate, on Wednesday announced partnering with Guaranteed Rate, one of America’s largest nonbanks.
The companies say together they will drive digitization and enable relationships across the mortgage ecosystem, “from title and settlement agents to real estate professionals.”
Guaranteed Rate stated that due to a focus on agent’s digital adoption, the two companies are poised to drive transformation and accelerate the number of electronic closings by “allowing all stakeholders to connect, sign and notarize documents.”
The announcement comes as 40 states have permanent Remote Online Notarization (RON) laws, with seven more having temporary authorizations on the practice. (California remains a prominent holdout.) Stavvy says as a result, providing Guaranteed Rate with RON capabilities will increase satisfaction and improve customer turnaround times by meeting these digital closing needs.
“Guaranteed Rate recognizes that title and settlement agents and law firms provide critical services to consumers and customers in mortgage and real estate transactions. Our partnership empowers these talented and dedicated professionals to adopt digital tools while maintaining the quality service and jurisdictional expertise necessary for the ideal consumer experience,” stated Kosta Ligris, Founder and CEO of Stavvy, in the release.
Stavvy also partnered with loss mitigation and loan modification solution provider Covius at the beginning of the year to offer RON and eSignature capabilities for all loan mitigation products, regardless of recording requirements. This followed Ginnie Mae’s formal approval of eSign and RON on loan modifications in November 2021, which also contributes to this growing demand.
The partnership follows Stavvy’s appointment of former Fannie Mae associate general counsel, Brooke Adams, as general counsel and chief compliance officer. Stavvy also recently launched its Morningside Fellowship Program, aimed at providing undergrads with fintech experience.
The announcement comes shortly after Guaranteed Rate walked away from talks to acquire Finance of America’s forward mortgage retail channel.
