Floify now competes directly with Equifax’s The Work Number
Mortgage solutions provider Floify is now being overhauled Equifax‘s much-maligned workplace verification provider The Work Number, which has been criticized by mortgage lenders and regulators for years of cost increases.
Floify is the first point of sale (POS) system to introduce native electronic verification of income and employment, said Sofia Rossato, Floify’s president, in an interview with HousingWire. It is powered by Argylean authorized report provider for Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac‘s acceptance engines. Argyle reaches approximately 90% of employers in America.
Floify’s new product, called Floify Verify, allows lenders to verify income and employment at a price that’s 60% to 80% cheaper than a legacy system like Equifax, all without the hassle of managing additional third-party vendors , said Rossato.
Lenders can integrate Floify Verify directly into the loan application process to speed loan approval. Lenders can also configure Floify Verify to be initiated by lending teams later in the process, such as after a financial pre-screening, allowing them to better control the borrower experience and costs.
Additionally, the solution supports on-demand re-verification, such as the 10-day pre-closing verification required for agency loans, at no additional cost.
“VOIE has been a pain point for many of our customers, with older authentication methods delivering low success rates at a high price. These methods are ill-suited for today’s workforce and too expensive at a time when the cost of creating new products has risen to unsustainable levels,” said Rossato, a 2024 HousingWire Woman of Influence.
Floify, acquired by Veranda Group in 2021 is one of many startups looking to take market share from Equifax. Based in Florida Truv (which also integrates with Floify’s system) is another system that has made progress in recent years.
Still, companies face an uphill battle: According to recent estimates, the Work Number is still used in about 60% of mortgage loans.
Equifax is currently being sued by mortgage lenders First financial loans And Greystone Mortgagewho claim that they have maintained a monopoly on the market.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said the product rose from $20 per pull in 2016 to $90 per pull in 2023. And for background displays, the retail price is now $115 per pull, according to the CFPB.
“Lenders that attempt to pass the cost of screening applicants’ risks on to borrowers risk violating legal restrictions on charging legitimate fees to borrowers,” Chopra said at an industry event in the spring. “This means that as the cost of screening applicants increases, the cost of initial screening of credit reports increases… some mortgage lenders will choose to screen fewer borrowers. The strong price increases raise many questions for me. Why are lenders and borrowers charged repeatedly for the same information?”
