Phase Two: 2009 HUD Partners Surveys

OMB Approval No.: xxx
Expires: xxxx

HUD Survey of FHA-Approved
Single Family
Mortgage Lenders

This brief, confidential survey solicits your opinion—as a spokesperson for your company—of the service being
provided to you by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)/Federal Housing Administration (FHA).
Please answer the questions by placing an “x” in the box of the response that comes closest to describing your experiences
with HUD. If you deal with more than one HUD program, office, or employee, please take all of your experiences into
consideration when answering the questions.
Your responses will remain confidential. Neither you nor your company will be identified in reporting the survey
findings to HUD/FHA or anyone else. The survey is being conducted by Silber & Associates, an independent and nonpartisan research organization.
Please complete the questionnaire this week and return it in the enclosed envelope. If you need assistance, please
telephone Silber & Associates toll-free at 1-888-SILBER-1 (888-745-2371) or e-mail [email protected].

1.

How frequent have your company’s contacts been with HUD/FHA during the past twelve months?
Very frequent (PLEASE GO TO Question 2)
Somewhat frequent (PLEASE GO TO Question 2)
Not very frequent (PLEASE GO TO Question 2)
On behalf of your business or organization, are you in a position to assess and
None at all
comment on the performance of HUD’s organization and programs?
Don’t know
Yes (CONTINUE)
No
Don’t Know

2.

PLEASE FORWARD TO APPROPRIATE PERSON, OR RETURN
QUESTIONNAIRE IF THERE IS NO SUCH PERSON

During the past twelve months has your company had contact with:

Yes

No

Don’t Know

a. HUD personnel in HUD’s Washington DC Headquarters office
b. HUD personnel in one or more of HUD’s field offices
c. HUD personnel in one or more HUD/FHA Homeownership Centers
d. HUD personnel in the National Servicing Center

3.

4.

HUD has several different responsibilities. On one hand, it provides various forms of
support (for example, funding, technical assistance, information) and, on the other,
it has a regulatory responsibility (that is, it makes rules, assures compliance
with those rules, makes assessments). In your company’s relationship with HUD,
would you say HUD is mainly providing support to you, mainly regulating you, or
doing both about equally?

Thinking first about HUD/FHA programs with which you currently deal and then
about how HUD runs those programs, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you, in
general, with:

a. The HUD programs you currently deal with
b. The way HUD currently runs those programs
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5.

Listed below are several different ways to think about your relationship with HUD/FHA.

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For each item, indicate your level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction at the present point
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a.

The quality of the information you currently receive from HUD

b.

The timeliness of the information you currently receive from HUD

c.

The timeliness of decision-making by HUD (such as requests for waivers, rulings,
and approvals)

d.

6.

The quality of guidance you currently get from HUD

e.

The consistency of guidance you currently get from HUD

f.

The clarity of HUD rules and requirements that apply to your company; in
other words, how easy they are to understand

g.

The responsiveness of the people with whom you currently deal at HUD

h.

The competence of the people with whom you currently deal at HUD

i.

The extent to which HUD employees have the knowledge, skills, and ability
to do their work

j.

Your ability to reach the people at HUD whom you need to contact

k.

The time commitment required to comply with HUD reporting requirements
(e.g., annual renewal process, FHA Connection)

HUD/FHA provides training and technical assistance through different methods.
For each method listed below, please indicate how useful or not useful you’ve
found it. Check “Have not used” if you haven’t used the method for HUD training
or technical assistance.
a. HUD-sponsored conferences

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b. HUD-sponsored satellite broadcasts
c. HUD-sponsored training programs conducted by contractors
d. HUD’s/FHA’s Webpage
e. HUD’s Webcast training
7.

HUD/FHA has increasingly relied on electronic transmission to communicate with its
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partners. Based on your experience in the past 12 months, please indicate how
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effective or ineffective each of the following has been as a tool for HUD to convey
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important information to you, such as notices and guidance. Check “Have not used”
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b. HUD’s Website postings
c. HUD’s E-mail (individual correspondence to or from a HUD employee)
8.

FHA’s Neighborhood Watch Early Warning System allows FHA-approved lenders to
identify and analyze the performance of loans they originate, underwrite, or
service. It is intended to highlight exceptions so that potential problems are readily
identifiable. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with each of the following aspects
of the Neighborhood Watch Early Warning System?
a. The basic information tools such as “Early Warnings,” “Servicing,”
“Analysis,” or “Details”
b. The “Lender Reporting” element
c. The “Help/Abort” menu
d. The “Feedback” feature
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8a. If you are “somewhat dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with any aspect of the Neighborhood Early Watch Warning
System, please tell us the reason for your dissatisfaction.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9.

In general, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the following HUD/FHA systems,
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considering such things as ease of use, availability of technical assistance, etc.
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a. The Neighborhood Watch Early Warning System

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b. FHA Connection, which provides FHA-approved lenders and business
partners with direct, secure, online access to HUD computer systems
10. FHA maintains a Resource Center allowing mortagees and loan correspondents to seek information or ask questions
regarding loan products, processing issues, mortgage credit guidelines, property analysis guidelines, use of FHA
Connection, etc. The Center can be contacted by telephone or e-mail or searched online (via the Internet).
Are you aware of the Resource Center?
Yes (please go to question 11)

No (please skip to question 12)

Don’t know (please skip to question 12)

11. [If yes to question 10]: Overall, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the Resource
Center—taking into account such things as the quality of information you received,
the responsiveness of staff, the ease or difficulty of reaching the Resource Center,
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etc.? If you have not used it in the last year or so, mark “Have not used.”
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Satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the assistance received via:
a. Telephone “helpline” (1-800-CALL-FHA)

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b. E-mail to the Resource Center ([email protected])
c. Internet (fhaoutreach.gov/FHAFAQ)
12. At both the HUD Headquarters and field office levels, FHA regularly conducts
Quality Assurance Monitoring Reviews that include on-site loan-level
examination of lender files as well as assessment of lenders’ compliance with
FHA loan origination and servicing requirements. Please indicate how useful
or not useful you have found the information you receive from such Quality
Assurance Monitoring Reviews.

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12a. If you answered “not too useful” or “not useful at all” to Question 10:
Please tell us how Quality Assurance Monitoring Reviews could be made more useful to you.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
13. In addition to the mortgage monitoring conducted by FHA’s Homeownership
Centers and other Departmental reviews of insured mortgage operations, FHA
conducts Post Endorsement Technical Reviews that are intended to provide useful
feedback to lenders regarding compliance with FHA requirements. Please indicate
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13a. If you answered “not too useful” or “not useful at all” to Question 11:
Please tell us how Post Endorsement Technical Reviews could be made more useful to you.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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14. As compared to what it was like prior to 2008, has your
FHA-insured loan volume since 2008 increased, decreased,
or stayed about the same?

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15. How long has your company been an FHA-approved
mortgagee or loan correspondent?

16. At present, taking everything into consideration, how satisfied or dissatisfied are
you with HUD’s/FHA’s overall performance?

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17. Please indicate the title/position of the primary person who answered these questions:
Owner or Senior Officer

Division or Branch Manager

Administrative Assistant/Secretary

Loan Officer/Underwriter/Quality Control Specialist

Other Lender Employee

Other:_______________________________________________

18. Taking into account all the jobs in your employment history, how many years, in
total, have you interacted with HUD/FHA as part of your job?

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19. Among your functions, are you involved in or responsible for any of the following aspects of your company’s FHA
operations? Please check all that apply.
Loan Origination
Underwriting
Processing
Quality Control

Servicing

Secondary Marketing

Office Administration

Other:________________________________________________________

20. What type of mortgagee or loan correspondent is your company?
Supervised Mortgagee/Full Eagle
Non-Supervised Mortgagee/Full Eagle
Supervised Loan Correspondent/Mini-Eagle

Non-Supervised Loan Correspondent/Mini-Eagle

Government Mortgagee

Investing Mortgagee
Don’t Know

21. Which HUD/FHA Homeownership Center or Centers do you interact with on a regular basis? Mark all that apply.
Atlanta
Denver
Philadelphia
Santa Ana
We welcome and appreciate any comments you may have about HUD/FHA. PLEASE PRINT. Add paper as needed.

Thank You for Completing the HUD Survey of FHA-Approved Single Family Mortgage Lenders.
A prepaid envelope is enclosed for your convenience. Please return your completed questionnaire to:
HUD SURVEY, c/o Silber & Associates, 13067 12 Hills Road, Suite B, Clarksville, MD 21029-1144

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SURVEY?

CALL: 1-888-SILBER-1

FAX: 1-410-531-3100

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E-MAIL: [email protected]

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