Mortgage Servicing Escrow Specialist

Pay is based on a number of factors including the successful candidate’s job-related knowledge and skills, qualifications, and prior experience. Arvest offers a comprehensive suite of benefits, including a full range of health and life, financial, and wellness benefits. For more information about benefits, please visit www.arvest.com/careers/benefits.

Position can be located anywhere within the Arvest four state operational footprint. (OK,KS,MO,AR)

Position is Monday through Friday 8am to 5 pm with additional hours as needed.

Summary:

SUMMARY: The associate will prepare, process, and follow up on the department’s real estate taxes, to ensure that loan collateral is protected. The associate handles mortgage servicing escrow analysis on all escrowed mortgage loans. The associate also researches problem accounts as well as handles customer service calls and e-mails regarding real estate taxes and escrow analysis. This associate will work directly with customers, bank associates, and third parties to research and resolve escrow and analysis tax issues and determine the best course of resolution.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

1. Accept internal/external customer calls and correspondence regarding real estate taxes and escrow analysis, ensuring excellent customer service, finding an accurate solution in a timely and efficient manner and properly commenting response and findings.
2. Prepare, balance, process, and pay all annual, semi-annual and quarterly tax payments. Run queries and perform regular tax audits, researching legal descriptions and county records to identify possible security instrument corrections needed.
3. Monitor and review low value taxes on new construction loans, determining if the property was new construction and then calculating an estimated tax based on the full value of the property. Monitor and review VA exemption status for escrowed taxes, determining eligibility and following up annually as needed.
4. Add new loans, update active loans as needed, and cancel inactive loans with Tax Service. Work with tax service to ensure correct parcels are contracted by researching legal descriptions and county records to identify possible discrepancies and/or security instrument corrections.
5. Process delinquent reports provided by tax service for escrow and non-escrow loans, adding escrow if needed and reviewing the escrow payment for possible adjustments for escrow loans. File and follow up on claims with appropriate parties (Tax service, title companies) ensuring penalties are refunded if not borrower responsibility.
6. Research and process tax refunds, working with the tax authorities to research legal descriptions, if applicable, and to determine who paid the tax. If paid in error, provide additional coordination with the tax authority and payee to make corrections. Once research is complete, review the loan to determine if any payment adjustments are needed.
7. Create, research, finalize, and mail initial, annual, short year, and other miscellaneous analysis batches to include surplus checks when applicable. State specific requirements must be taken into consideration.
8. Ensure customer’s escrow analysis statement is correct and delivered in a timely manner, allowing the customer appropriate notice of upcoming escrow payment change.
9. Process escrow waiver and escrow addition requests. This requires understanding both the business requirements and each investor’s guidelines for waiving escrow: i.e. credit checks, loan to values, seasoning requirements, etc.
10. Process all escrow functions for in-house bank loans with escrow accounts setup on CBS servicing system. Provide daily transaction report to Cashiering for posting and reconcile the balances on two different systems daily. Follow up on any outstanding checks monthly. Post transactions on two different systems. Manually update payments as needed on CBS after running escrow analysis on Servicing Director. Reconcile next payment due dates on both systems.
11. Run exception item reports to identify any missing initial escrow accounts on the servicing software and work with the Loan Boarding, Loan Operations department, title companies and loan officers to find a solution and correct any escrow account discrepancies due to inaccurate or missing escrow information.
12. Provide Loss Mitigation department new escrow analysis figures showing the correct account balance and new escrow payment based on terms of loan modification documents. Ensure escrow is correctly setup on each loan entering the modification process and provide capitalization figures to Loss Mitigation, if applicable. Run escrow batches on Loan Mod trials, Loan Mod finals and annually until the end of the Escrow Modification Terms. Review modification loans to verify the correct amounts have been paid out of escrow and follow up on final mods to ensure shortages are properly capitalized.
13. Provide Bankruptcy department pre-petition escrow balance shortage figures and follow up on all corporate funds that have been advanced. This requires a basic understanding of post-petition and pre-petition escrow payments and analyzing disbursements in order to determine if manual adjustments are needed to ensure correct figures are provided to the bankruptcy courts.
14. Understand and comply with bank policy, laws, regulations, and the bank's BSA/AML Program, as applicable to your job duties. This includes but is not limited to; complete compliance training and adhere to internal procedures and controls; report any known violations of compliance policy, laws, or regulations and report any suspicious customer and/or account activity.

TEAM ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Support and uphold the Arvest Mission Statement.
• Uphold the Arvest Code of Ethics and ensure that confidential information is safeguarded.
• Maintain a high level of cooperation and rapport with all associates in order to ensure accurate and efficient operations and service.
• Formulate and communicate new ideas and suggestions that will improve profitability and efficiency for the company’s overall operation.
• Always promote professionalism.

Responsibilities:

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE:

• High School Diploma or General Education Degree (GED) required.
• 6 months of customer service experience required.
• 6 months of accounting or 6 months of mortgage loan servicing/operations or equivalent experience required.
• Proficiency in Excel and Microsoft Word required.
• Previous escrow experience preferred.
• Previous banking experience preferred.
• Previous experience with legal descriptions preferred.

OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Must be able to arrive at work on time, work on site and have regular work attendance
• Must be able to work cooperatively with other co-workers regardless of personality, presence or communication style
• Must be able to provide cordial customer service regardless of customer personality, presence or communication style
• Must be able to perform several tasks at once
• Must be able to work in a stressful atmosphere
• Must be able to rotate job tasks
• Must be able to occasionally work overtime
• Must be able to greet others cordially
• Must be able to coordinate multiple and changing priorities
• Must be able to verbally communicate with all other associates
• Must be able to operate telephone, scanner, copier and FAX machines
• Must be able to move from department, division, or bank to department, division or bank to attend meetings
• Must be able to operate personal computer keyboard in order to create reports, schedules and other appropriate documentation

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an associate to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the associate is regularly required to stand, walk, sit, and to talk and hear. The associate must occasionally reach with hands and arms; stoop, kneel, or crouch.

The associate may occasionally be required to lift or move up to 25 pounds.

Specific vision abilities required by this job include close, distance and color vision and the ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an associate may encounter while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Grade 11

Pay Range: $17.80 - $22.20 per hour