US Credit Quality Continues to Inch Forward   

from FICO Banking Analytics Blog

We recently crunched the data from the latest national distribution of FICOŽ Scores. Our findings reveal a continued slow but steady improvement in US consumer credit quality. 

Though the median FICOŽ Score has remained 711 since 2011, there are positive signs in score movement in the most recent timeframe, from October 2012 to October 2013.

Specifically, we continue to see that the number of consumers in the lowest score ranges is shrinking. In fact, it's hit its lowest point since peaking in October 2009. In October 2013, 24.0% of consumers scored less than 600, down from 24.4% in October 2012. We've almost reached our pre-recession benchmark of 23.8% in October 2007.

The score movement table below reinforces this general positive shift in credit health. The table shows how the scores of different pockets of consumers migrated between October 2012 and October 2013. In general, more consumers are moving to higher score intervals than to lower score intervals. Many consumers, however, remain in their current score band.

 

Many risk managers we talk to are predicting that balances will be on the rise in 2014. In fact, 57.6% of the US risk managers we recently surveyed expect the average balance on credit cards to increase. Given the importance of indebtedness calculations in the FICOŽ Score, if our prognosticators are correct, it will be interesting to see if any rise in balance will halt the slow but steady recovery we've observed in credit quality over the last few years.

Posted by Frederic Huynh on 02/03/2014 at 10:57 AM in Credit Trends, Economic Trends, FICO Score FAQ, Infographic, Score Distributions, Score Performance | Permalink  

posted on Focus on Leadership by Jane Benston   

Successful teams who consistently achieve superior results are filled with highly motivated, engaged team members who approach their job with energy, enthusiasm and creatively. 

But where do you find these people who willing put in the extra effort, who provide exceptional customer service, who look for ways to support business growth and who are brilliant at working with others in the team to come up with innovative solutions?

Imagine the results your team could achieve if everyone fit this description!  For many business this imagine is nothing more than a dream.

These types of team members seem few and far between..... and that's because they are.

Highly engaged employees are rare!  According to the most recent Gallop Poll only 24% of Australian team members are "engaged."  20% are "actively disengaged" with the rest being "not engaged."

Engaged employees stand apart from the rest because of the level of discretionary effort they bring to their role.  These team members willingly go the extra, work with a sense of passion and purpose and are connected and committed to the company goals.

In contrast, actively disengaged employees are generally disgruntled, and looking for ways to disrupt and more often "infect" those around them with their less than positive attitude.  And most frustratingly they take up your time and energy managing their behaviors and poor performance.  This can impact everything from customer service to sales, quality, productivity and retention.

The group of "not engaged" employees represent the greatest untapped potential for improved team performance and results.  This group is not overly hostile but tend to sleepwalk through the day, watching the clock, bringing with them an unmotivated and uninspired energy to the office.

I can relate to this.  For most of my working career I have sat firmly in the "engaged" group willingly going the extra mile to get the best results possible for the business and loving the work I was doing.  So to my shock and dismay, several years ago I slipped into the "not engaged" group.

I didn't have a great relationship with my manager. I felt that the work I was doing was not valued and I was disconnected from the bigger picture and goals of the business. I still enjoyed working with the team ... but that was not enough.

I would dread the thought of going to work. I watch the clock, counting down the minutes until it was time for coffee, lunch or time to go home. I was going through the motions continuing to do what was necessary .... but no more than that.

So with the majority of employees heading to work each day, lacking energy, passion and full engagement, how do we convert these people into highly effective team members to increase performance and sustainable business growth?

Here are 5 simple strategies from the Closing The Gap by Gebauer and Lowman. 

1. Know them.  The relationship between you and you team is a critical factor in team member engagement and performance results.

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Current Owner Search

• In order to complete a current owner search (AKA arms-length search or limited coverage search) the searcher must go back to the last link in the chain of title that includes a deed and a simultaneous purchase money mortgage in favor of an institutional lender.
• A current owner search is considered as a good root to begin a title search for certain transactions because there is a high probability that title insurance was issued on the previous purchase money transaction.
• This kind of title searching usually includes searches for property liens, liens against the owner and the other parties of the title and search for bankruptcy proceedings against the owner of the property. 
• A current owner search is usually only acceptable on residential refinance or foreclosure transactions.

Full Title Search (VA)

• A full coverage search is usually done when creating a title report for residential sale/resale transactions and any commercial transactions.
• The compilation of all documents appearing in the public record for the last 40 years, and reports on the status of title.
• Performed primarily to answer three questions regarding a property:
  1. Does the seller have a saleable interest in the property?
  2. What kind of restrictions or allowances pertain to the use of the land? These would include real covenants, easements and other servitudes.
  3. Do any liens exist on the property which need to be paid off at closing? These would be mortgages, back taxes, mechanic's liens, and other assessments.

For information outlining the difference between a Title Search vs. a Title Policy click here. 

For more details about the different types of title searches and which one is right for your client's situation, please contact Gail Duffy at 1.800.468.5811 or by e-mail. 

VTC TEAMMATE FEATURE

Lori Messer, Settlement Coordinator

and Post Closer

You can say hello to Lori by e-mail or call her at 800.468.5811.

Click here to view information about other members of the VTC team.

Check out our fun YouTube video that introduces the team.