The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced on Wednesday that the Home Equity Reverse Mortgage Information Technology (HERMIT) system has received a second software update within the span of a single week, this time to the system’s file format and layout.
“Today, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced updates to the Home Equity Reverse Mortgage Information Technology (HERMIT) system’s file format and layout,” FHA said in its publication of FHA-INFO #20-67 on Wednesday. “The changes are scheduled to be implemented on September 26, 2020, to improve the reporting of Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) terminations.”
This latest update to HERMIT arrives less than a week after the publication of FHA INFO #20-66, in which HERMIT was updated to allow reverse mortgage servicers to submit extensions under the provisions of the presidentially-declared national emergency stemming from the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
In conjunction with the previous update, reverse mortgage servicers are directed to consult the HERMIT User Guide and the HERMIT System & Resources documents for more information.
HERMIT was launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in October of 2012 after a protracted development cycle. Its creation aimed to improve the processes associated with the endorsement of HECMs, as well as the processing of servicing and claims within HUD.
HERMIT was developed through a contract with Reverse Mortgage Solutions, which partnered with QSSI on creating a service provider platform. Reverse Technology Group (RTG) acquired the software in early 2017.
As of publication, FHA INFO #20-67 is not yet available on the HUD website. This article will be updated once the notice is available there.
