If you are planning to go with an online solution you need to make sure the company offers encryption, data access layers and security protocols. You have to partner with a company that addresses these issues thoroughly. SAAS is the future of software as we see it moving today. Software as we see it today is moving in that direction. We can justify that by looking out of the mortgage space. For example, salesforce.com says that you as a company can go out and focus on your core business and let us technology people manage the technology part.

This way businesses will be able to cut IT staff, slash associated expenses and maintain healthy bottom lines. This line has been around since the application server trend started, but with Google and Microsoft now focusing on SAAS, I'm seeing a lot of people backing and upgrading this process. Also, with the Internet becoming more reliable and trusted, SAAS will become more mainstream.

Why isn't the mortgage space adopting this technology today? "The mortgage space is always the last to adapt or catch on. Many of our customers are telling us that they want to focus on growing, not supporting a technology staff and paying for upgrades. It is expected that the SAAS model will catch on in the mortgage industry soon.

The cons to SAAS are that it may not be for you, if you are hard and fast about owning your data and are not comfortable with the leasing model. "It's a hard thing for some people to swallow as they want to buy and own technology in-house. I think it is a moot point because software is always becoming outdated and has to be continually upgraded.?

The main draw to Web-based software is that it allows the user to be mobile. Beyond that, vendors like Alpharetta and Ga.-based Advectis offer BlitzDocs programs to connect brokers to lenders and other third-party services.

"We're seeing the broker pool that's using BlitzDocs being more satisfied," explained Advectis President and Chief Executive Greg Smith. "We're adding more sophistication to the workflow characteristics of the product right now. Things like action sets where multiple events are triggered with a single click are very favorable. Brokers see that this isn't a static product.?

"Typically, BlitzDocs enables the brokers to work alongside their lenders. That makes it so much easier for a broker to deal with the lender and to handle the docs. Statusing is a real time process, which is something that our brokers are relying on to make faster decisioning. Both lender and broker are able to compress the time needed to for loan processing.?

"One of the big releases that we came up with recently is the ability to use what we call action sets to drive different events that may happen sequentially or simultaneously without the user having to touch the product. We're about to introduce a reporting module that will allow the user to report on snapshot activity. This will enable users to top view the pipeline to develop trending materials. Some of our users have that built into their origination system while others don't. There is a lot of demand for such a module and we will respond to that need."

Another collaborative tool that is more commonly known in the space is Dublin, Calif.-based Ellie Mae's ePASS. Ellie Mae has released an ePASS addition that makes it possible for Calyx Point users to access ePASS and feed data from Point into ePASS to a lender and back into Point. The application is called ePASS Express. It looks like an Instant Messenger and sits on the left side of the screen.

"We originally started with 29 lenders on the product and have subsequently added six new ones," noted David Lewis, senior vice president, marketing. "When we were demonstrating Encompass we heard that a lot of Point users were upset about the lack of lenders in Point. We wanted to give them a consistent access point.?

"Basically, they use it to go to the lender's door front and proceed from there. We have put it out as a free utility and are happy to note that it has received a positive response. Another benefit is that it stores the password and user name for all lender websites so users can just log right in.?

"We're planning to have a revamp of the lender storefront in April. Users have looked to us to bring in consistency to the lender's storefront because they all look different and the mode to access might be different as well.?

"It saves the broker 10 to 15 minutes to get the loan to the lender this way," Mr. Lewis said. "If you're just using Point, you have to leave Point, you get to the lender's website, you log in, you upload the file from point, etc. There are somewhere between 18 and 25 clicks needed to get that loan to the lender.?

"However, this product gets you there in just one click, it's free, installs in under a minute and includes every new lender added to our network and we're adding a new lender every month," said Mr. Lewis. "It also works with all versions of Point and sits alongside your point application."