Just Because We Can, Does Not Mean That We Should!
The Pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
It’s only a matter of time. Unfortunately, our society appears to be rapidly approaching the unfortunate state of ultimate laziness, apathy, and inertia. Applications such as those that encourage us to, among other things, sit on our rear ends and order groceries that will be delivered within an hour, leave us with little incentive to exert physical effort and actually move! Why get up and expend energy when, in moments, your groceries (or anything else that you order) can be delivered right to your door? I can even foresee apps through which, after the tap or two of some smartphone keys, someone materializes at your door who will let themself in, put away those groceries, cook your meal, spoon feed it to you on the couch, wipe your chin, clean up afterwards, and leave only to return when it’s time for your next meal.
Surely the day peers over the not-too-distant horizon when one won’t have to activate a muscle or lift a finger because technology will do everything for us. The human species will finally be transformed into motionless blobs slouching idly on couches everywhere.
By now I’m confident that I’ve impressed upon you my disdain for the overdependence on technology and artificial intelligence. And it’s not because I fear a world full of Terminators at the command of Cyberdyne Systems. Well, actually, I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t at least slightly concerned about that! My more urgent focus, at this particular moment, however, is the ultimate eradication of personal connection along with the petrification of human creativity, intelligence, and touch.
Everywhere you turn, mortgage companies are luring prospective employees and customers by toting the virtues of AI. Personally, I will neither endorse nor embrace the use of AI nor will I ever intentionally utilize it. I consider AI’s impersonal nature and dangerous potential to be a relevant impediment to the formulation and growth of loyal customer and referral relationships. Am I fighting a losing battle? Perhaps. Am I creating additional work for myself? Likely. But you know what I will achieve by avoiding the use of AI? I’ll retain genuine human connections along with the ability to think creatively, critically, and independently instead of allowing my mind and spirit to atrophy through their lack of use.
Mortgage companies increasingly consider AI to be a useful tool for streamlining processes, cutting costs, and accommodating customers. But when it comes down to it, I am convinced and predict that it will ultimately cause more problems than do good.
Human Interaction
Nothing replaces the value of the human connection. A person pursuing mortgage financing is embarking upon one of the most important and potentially stressful transactions of his or her life.
Unfortunately, and to a significant extent, we have become an anxiety-laden society where live human interaction is viewed as undesirable or, at the very least, uncomfortable. Unfortunately, people have grown so accustomed to the anonymity of and desensitized by their smartphones and devices that even making direct eye contact has become challenging. To some, crawling on broken glass may be more desirable than engaging in a live, in-person conversation with another human being.
The potential borrower who may initially prefer the opportunity to avoid human interaction by applying for a mortgage online over a website or through an app simply does not appreciate how much the lack of human involvement can mean the difference between a smooth and complicated experience. How can a software program effectively reassure a worrisome borrower? How can a bot hold the hand of a nervous and confused first-time home buyer? The simple answer is, neither of those can.
Mortgage Qualification is Complicated
As a mortgage loan originator, whenever a potential borrower submitted an application through my website, I treated it as nothing other than their expressed interest in a mortgage loan. Upon receiving the online application, I would contact the submitter to schedule an appointment to take an actual application. Why? Because more than 95% of the time the application that I would ultimately process would differ dramatically from the application that the applicant originally submitted through my website.
The average person is unaware of how income, assets, employment history, and liabilities are entered onto a mortgage application and evaluated. The average layperson has no idea as to what income of theirs may and may not be considered. They’re oblivious to the conditions under which some of their income could be increased or when its consideration would be prohibited altogether. Most, without mortgage experience, will not know how to properly disclose their assets, what assets need to be sourced, and what assets may and may not be used. Can certain employment be considered and when might something need to be added to or removed from their application’s liability section?
Too many variables are present to be able to count on the accuracy of an applicant’s uneducated interpretation of their circumstances in relation to how a mortgage application is executed. As such, there is no possible way to negate the need for a skilled human mortgage loan originator.
I concede that modern technology is capable of exceeding what the human mind can currently accomplish by leaps and bounds. But, just as the average borrower is unable to accurately navigate through all of the mortgage underwriting nuances on his or her own, there is simply no feasible way to program or prepare AI to account for all of the unpredictable variables that can easily change the mortgage application’s course. No two transactions are ever the same. Each mortgage application, each borrower, and each transaction is inherently unique. Only a thoroughly-skilled, knowledgeable, and competent human mortgage loan originator can interpret the presenting circumstances and render the appropriate suggestions, recommendations, guidance, and decisions to effectively and smoothly navigate the transaction to success.
I consider AI to be nothing more than the hot buzzword of the day. And I would bet my bottom dollar that, once mortgage transactions consistently begin to derail on a widespread basis due to AI-related complications, the human mortgage loan originator’s value will forever be forged as a fundamental mortgage origination component.