Encompass LO Connect Updates and Enhancements to Features - 21.4 Major Release

This section discusses the updates and enhancements to existing forms, features, services, or settings that are provided in this release.

Form & Tool Enhancements

Support for the Affiliated Business Arrangements form has been added to LO Connect. To help ensure compliance with RESPA requirements for disclosing affiliated business relationships, the Affiliated Business Arrangements form enables companies with affiliated business relationships with multiple affiliates such as title companies and appraisal management companies to store information for each affiliate and provide a separate disclosure for each affiliate independently. This disclosure helps investors ensure that they have visibility into a lender's affiliated relationships and whether fees being paid to affiliates are indicated appropriately on the loan.

To Add an Affiliated Company:

  1. From a loan in LO Connect, select Affiliated Business Arrangements from the forms list.

  2. Select New to add a new affiliate business.

  3. On the New Affiliate Business window, enter the details for the business.

  4. Select Services to enter the service description, charges, and usage requirements associated with the affiliate business.

  5. Select OK to save the entry.

To Apply an Affiliated Business Arrangement Template

If your system administrator has created Affiliated Business Arrangement templates, which are templates pre-populated with business affiliate information, you can apply a template to the Affiliated Business Arrangement form rather than manually entering this information.

  1. Near the top of the Affiliated Business Arrangements form, select Apply Template.

  2. Navigate to the folder where the template is stored, and select a template.

  3. Select Overwrite to replace any existing affiliate businesses on the loan or Append to append the template affiliate businesses to the loan.

Additional Features:

  • To change the order of the Affiliate Business Arrangement list, select the Handle at the front of a row and drag the entry to the location you want to move it to.

  • To edit an entry, select the Menu and then select Edit .

  • To delete an entry, select the Menu and then select Delete .

ENCW-47052

Support for the Affiliated Business Disclosure form has been added to LO Connect. Use the Affiliated Business Disclosure form to record information needed for the Affiliated Business Disclosure Statement output form. The form discloses the nature of the relationship to businesses associated with the loan. It also discloses the providers of settlement services (and the projected charges) that you plan to use.

To View the Affiliated Business Disclosure Form:

  1. From a loan in LO Connect, select Affiliated Business Disclosure from the forms list.

  2. Fill in any required information, and then select Save to save the loan.

ENCW-47061

Support for the Anti-Steering Safe Harbor Disclosure tool has been added to LO Connect. The Anti-Steering Safe Harbor Disclosure tool helps your company stay in compliance with anti-steering requirements. Use the Anti-Steering Safe Harbor Disclosure to enter information about the loan choices you are offering.

Note: The Copy Selected Option to Loan option, which is used to overwrite the current loan data with data from a different loan option of the borrower's choosing, is not enabled with this initial release of the form. This option will be available in a future release.

To View the Anti-Steering Safe Harbor Disclosure Form:

  1. From a loan in LO Connect, select Anti-Steering Safe Harbor Disclosure from the tools list.

  2. Fill in any required information, and then select Save to save the loan.

ENCW-65096

Support for the Lock Request tool has been added to Encompass LO Connect. Use the Lock Request form to submit a lock request, lock extension, or lock cancellation to the lock desk. A rate lock request can be used to submit a new lock or lock update while a re-lock request can be used to submit a canceled lock or expired lock to the lock desk.

Note: The Get Pricing button is not enabled with this initial release of this tool. This ability will be available in a future release.

You can adjust values on the Lock Request form and submit requests without affecting the associated fields in the main loan file. Any changes to the Lock Request form will not be incorporated into the loan file until the lock request is confirmed.

To Access the Lock Request Form:

  1. From a loan in Encompass LO Connect, select Lock Request from the tools list.

  2. Fill in any required information, and then select Save to save the loan.

  • All buttons except Reset Lock Request, Get Pricing, and Submit Request provide access to its associated pop-up window (e.g., Subject Property button opens the Subject Property Information pop-up window).

  • The Reset Lock Request button resets the values in the form and on the Additional Fields pop-up window to match the values in the loan file.

  • The Additional Fields pop-up window aligns with the Additional Fields tab of the SmartClient Lock Request Form.

  • The fields displayed in this pop-up window are maintained in the SmartClient Encompass Settings (Secondary Setup>Lock Request Additional Fields).

  • When there is data available in the loan file for the mapped fields, the system will display those details in this pop-up window.

  • You can modify the values in the pop-up window to run various pricing scenarios.

  • The View Borrowers pop-up window aligns with the Borrower/Co-Borrower fields (i.e., First Name, Last Name, SSN, Experian/FICO, Trans Union/Empirica, Equifax/BEACON, and Self-Employed) displayed in the Borrower Information section of the SmartClient Lock Request Form.

  • The Borrower/Co-Borrower fields in this pop-up window cannot be edited unlike the SmartClient Lock Request Form where the Borrower/Co-Borrower fields can be edited by selecting the Manage Borrowers button and making updates in the Manage Borrowers pop-up window.

  • The Subject Property pop-up window aligns with the Subject Property Infomormation section of the SmartClient Lock Request Form.

  • The Address field in this pop-up window can be edited unlike the SmartClient Lock Request Form where the Address field is read-only.

  • The Unit Type, Unit #, and Purchase Price fields in this pop-up window are read-only unlike the SmartClient Lock Request Form where the fields can be edited.

  • The Detailed Lock pop-up window aligns with the Detail Lock Request pop-up window of the SmartClient Lock Request Form.

  • This pop-up window only displays the Request Rate Lock and Pricing fields unlike the Detail Lock Request pop-up window of the SmartClient Lock Request Form where the window is divided into two sections: Current Lock and Request Rate Lock and Pricing.

ENCW-64637

A new Hybrid option has been added to the drop-down lists used to select the homeownership education program format for the borrower and co-borrower on the Homeownership Education & Housing Counseling form for the Application View.

ENCW-68461, ENCW-68177

Workflow Rule Enhancements

In the LO Connect 21.3 Major Release, administrators were able to import workflow rules from one environment to another. In the initial release, administrators were presented with general guidance to ensure that all rule dependencies were in place prior to importing a rule. If an administrator imported a rule that had missing dependencies and edited and saved the rule, there was no indication of what dependencies were missing when the rule was edited and saved. To assist in identifying dependency gaps, administrators are now presented with messaging to indicate where missing dependencies exist when saving an imported rule.

For example, if an imported rule is set to trigger when a specific task was created, but the task doesn't exist in the environment that the rule was imported into, a message is displayed to alert the administrator of this missing dependency when the rule is saved. The validations behave the same way as the required fields validation when creating or modifying a workflow rule.

Example Message:

Note: In order to identify missing dependencies, administrators must edit and then save an imported rule. It is recommended that administrators perform this action in order to validate any imported rules prior to activating the rule.

ENCW-65612, ENCW-66291, ENCW-66290

A new With Disposition option has been added to the Sub-Task Completed triggering event for workflow rules. With this new option, administrators can define a rule that is triggered when a completed sub-task has a specific disposition. This enhancement provides for tracking the completion of a sub-task with a specific disposition using the Sub-Task Completed event. As an example, an administrator can now configure a disposition of Not Applicable and have a workflow to complete sub-tasks and update the disposition to Not Applicable when another sub-task is completed as Not Applicable.

To View the With Disposition Option:

  1. From the Encompass Admin Portal, select Process Automation.

  2. Select Workflow Rules.

  3. Create or edit a rule.

  4. On the Edit Rule page, select Sub-Task Completed in the Triggering Event field.

  5. Select the With Disposition field to view the options available.

Note: The administrator must enable the Enable disposition at sub-tasks level option on the Workflow Tasks > Global Task Settings page for this option to work.

ENCW-64661

A new Re-open completed Task to create Sub-Tasks(s) option has been added to the Results tab when configuring workflow rules that have a resulting action of Create Sub-Task. In order for a sub-task to be created on a task, the task must be open. With this option, administrators can configure a rule so that a closed parent task will be opened in order to create the sub-task when the rule is triggered.

ENCW-56843

A change has been made to the Field Value Modified triggering event for workflow rules to enable administrators to manually enter an Encompass field ID. Previously, administrators were only able to select a field ID by selecting the  Select ID button, and then searching for a field. Now, if the administrator knows the field ID they want to configure the rule off of, they can enter the field in the Encompass Field ID field. This change not only makes it easier to enter fields IDs, but also enables you to enter a virtual field ID. For example, if you want to track if a document, such as a flood certificate, is received you can not track that virtual field change by adding [Document.DateReceived.Flood Certificate] in the Field Modified event. You could then enure that the rule triggers by adding a condition, such as Not IsEmpty([Document.DateReceived.Flood Certificate]) in the Advanced Conditions in the Conditions tab of the rule.

Example Condition:

Note: This method of defining the field ID has no validation in place to ensure that the field entered matches a field in Encompass. Administrators should only enter a field if they are sure that they are entering a valid Encompass field ID. As previously stated, fields assigned to the Field Value Modified Trigger should be added to the Reporting Database and included in the Audit Trail.

ENCW-45253

Task Framework Enhancements

A change has been made to the Edit and Delete options on the Tasks page to hide options when they are not usable. The Edit and Delete options have been removed on the Tasks page in the Encompass Admin Portal when the top Task Group and Task Container or Standalone Tasks folders are selected. In addition, the order of the Edit and Delete options have been switched for sub-tasks to remain consistent with other areas of LO Connect.

ENCW-64678

A change has been made to the tasks list behavior when users return to the list after viewing or editing task details. With this change, users are now returned back to their previous location in the task list on the Tasks page in the Encompass Admin Portal. Previously, users were moved to the top of the task list, losing their place in the list.

NGENY-46695

Task Enhancements

A change has been made to the Workflow Tasks pipeline to use the existing Show sub-task count setting on the Global Task Settings page in the Encompass Admin portal. Originally, this setting controlled whether or not to display the number of sub-tasks on the Task Details and Status page on a loan. As of this update, this setting now also controls whether the Open Sub-Tasks column is displays on the Workflow Tasks Pipeline page in LO Connect.

ENCW-59033

A number of incremental changes have been made to tasks in LO Connect to improve usability. The following changes have been made:

  • Increased the width of the Add Task pop-up window on the Workflow Tasks page. This change enables users to easily view tasks and task groups with longer names

  • The logged in user can now select their name from the list of users in the Re-assign field on a task. Previously, logged in users that were not assigned to a role on the loan would not be able to select their own account.

  • Added a Refresh icon next to the Add Task button to the Workflow Tasks tool which enables the user to refresh the list of tasks without needing to leave Workflow Tasks tool.

ENCW-52804, ENCW-65265, ENCW-65266

Services Updates

Support for ordering of closing fees has been added to LO Connect. With this release, administrators can now configure manual, one-click, and automated ordering options for closing fees through Closing Corp. For details on configuring manual service ordering for closing fees, click here.

Once the service setup has been configured by the administrator, authorized users can order closing fees from the services page on a loan.

Note: Administrators should contact Closing Corp before placing orders through LO Connect to ensure their account is configured properly

To Order Closing Fees Manually:

  1. From a loan, select Services.
  2. Select All Services.
  3. On the Services landing page, navigate to the Closing Fees section and select Order.
  4. On the Order Closing Fees Services window, select the Provider and then select Next.

  5. The provider's ordering page displays. Follow the directions from the provider to place an order.

    • If you have any problems placing an order, contact the closing fees provider for assistance.

  6. Once the order is placed, the status of the order displays on the Closing Fees card.

  7. You can view the documents related to a completed order by selecting the attachment icon on the services landing page for the closing fees order.

  8. To view the details of the order, select the Menu icon and then select View Details.

ASO-8822

A change has been made to the data verification process for Automated Underwriting orders to help ensure that One-Click orders are successful. When a user placed a manual AUS order, they sometimes see a message box alerting them of missing loan data and asking if they want to continue with the order. This same missing loan data window was being applied to one-click orders but the window was not able to display. This caused orders to sometimes fail. This logic has now been removed from the one-click ordering workflow.

Note: The required fields window still displays for manual orders.

ASO-8822

A new Additional Services category has been added to the Services Management page in the Encompass Admin Portal. There are currently no partners in this category, but the category will be utilized in a future release.

ASO-9232

Fixed Issues

Why we made these updates: The following issues were fixed to improve usability and to help ensure Encompass LO Connect is operating as expected. The issues that are chosen to be fixed are based on the severity of their impact to clients and client feedback.

Borrower Pair Switching Now Working Correctly

An issue was discovered where users were unable to switch borrower pairs after navigating to some forms in LO Connect. This has been fixed, and now users can switch between borrower pairs on any form.

NGENY-28442

An issue was discovered where the Document Folders section on the Documents page was collapsed when a user viewed the documents page. In order to view the document folders on the loan, users were required to expand the Document Folders section. Now, when the user views the Documents page on a loan, the Document Folders section is expanded by default if there are existing document folders on the loan file.

ENCW-67100

An issue was discovered where users without persona access to the Lock Request Additional Fields option were unable to create new loans or open existing loans in LO Connect. This issue has been fixed, and now users without this persona setting enabled can create and view loans in LO Connect.

ENCW-66701

An issue was discovered where users were unable to select any of the navigation tabs or close a loan in certain conditions. When a user viewed a document on the documents page and then navigating to the conditions page, the user was then unable to select any of the navigation tabs (i.e. Workflow Tasks, Opportunities, etc) or close the loan file. This issue has been fixed, and now users can navigate through LO Connect as expected.

ENCW-67197

An issue was discovered where were not prompted to save changes made to a document on a loan when the user navigated to another page without saving first. Now, when a user makes changes and selects another page in LO Connect without saving, the following message displays:

ENCW-67190

Several issues have been identified in Encompass LO Connect which impacted user performance. These issues have been addressed to improve performance when creating loans or when opening existing loans from the Pipeline.

ENCW-67733, ENCW-67734, ENCW-67799

 

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