New Year’s Resolutions for Mortgage Servicers (and How to Actually Keep Them)
- Mirza Hodzic
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
January is that magical time of year when everyone is full of hope, fresh starts, and unrealistic confidence. Mortgage servicers are no different. We all look at our dashboards, our backlogs, our audit findings, and that one “temporary” spreadsheet that’s been in production since 2019—and we think: This is the year we fix it.
So let’s do it. Here’s an extensive, real-world set of New Year’s resolutions tailored specifically for mortgage servicers—plus practical ways to keep them—and how BlackWolf Advisory Group can help make sure your 2026 doesn’t turn into “same issues, but with a new date stamp.”
Resolution #1: “This year, we’re going to be audit-ready at all times.”
Translation: No more last-minute panic emails. No more “Can someone find the policy that supports this process?” No more turning an audit into a scavenger hunt.
How to keep it
Stop treating audits like surprise attacks. Make readiness a monthly rhythm.
Maintain a living audit binder (virtual, obviously): policies, evidence samples, reports, investor guidance references, control testing outputs, and issue logs.
Map controls to requirements: CFPB, state rules, investor guides (FNMA/FHLMC/FHA/VA), and your own internal policy commitments.
Run “mini-audits” quarterly on the riskiest areas (escrow, loss mit, foreclosure, complaints, SCRA, FDCPA touchpoints).
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf can build or enhance your audit readiness framework, including:
Control mapping and risk-based audit plans
QA/QC testing programs that mirror examiner and investor expectations
Evidence standards (what to keep, how to label it, and how to retrieve it quickly)
Issue management support so problems get fixed—not just documented
Resolution #2: “We’re going to get serious about Quality Control (QC)… for real this time.”
Translation: You don’t want QC to be “we sampled 10 loans and nobody cried,” you want QC that catches issues before they become findings.
How to keep it
Pick the right sample strategy: risk-based, targeted, and trend-driven—not random for the sake of random.
Stop sampling the safest loans. (Yes, we see you.)
Track repeat findings like they owe you money. Because they do—just in a more expensive way.
Turn QC results into operational change with owners, timelines, and proof of remediation.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf builds robust QC programs across servicing domains, including:
Loan boarding, payment processing, escrow, loss mitigation, foreclosure, bankruptcy, claims, complaints, and more
Detailed testing questionnaires and step-by-step procedures
KPI/QC dashboards that show trends, repeat issues, and root causes
Support designing automated or AI-enabled QC workflows (when it makes sense)
Resolution #3: “We’re going to fix escrow operations before escrow fixes us.”
Escrow is one of those areas where a small error becomes a big problem quickly—and then becomes a bigger problem once the regulator, investor, or borrower’s attorney shows up.
How to keep it
Standardize your analysis workflow and review rules (not “tribal knowledge”).
Define tolerances and exception handling clearly.
Monitor disbursement timeliness, shortages/surpluses, and customer communications.
Do a pre-peak-season readiness review so you’re not surprised when volumes spike.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf can deliver:
Escrow process assessments and remediation plans
Staffing models and workflow optimization
QC testing specifically focused on escrow calculations, notices, disbursements, and compliance requirements
Oversight structures that reduce borrower harm and complaint volume
Resolution #4: “We’ll reduce borrower complaints by solving the real causes.”
Translation: You can’t “customer service” your way out of a broken process forever. Eventually, the complaint queue becomes your unofficial operations report.
How to keep it
Create a complaint taxonomy (categories that actually mean something operationally).
Tag and trend complaints monthly.
Tie complaint drivers to process owners (friendly accountability).
Audit complaint responses for accuracy, timeliness, and regulatory consistency.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf can help design:
Complaint governance and trending dashboards
Root cause analysis frameworks
QC testing around complaint handling and response quality
Operational fixes that lower complaint volume over time
Resolution #5: “We’re going to take regulatory change management off ‘hero mode.’”
Hero mode is when everything depends on one person who “just knows stuff,” and when they’re on vacation the organization collectively forgets what Regulation X is.
How to keep it
Centralize intake of changes (CFPB, state agencies, investor bulletins).
Document applicability decisions and implementation steps.
Track implementation like a project: owners, due dates, evidence of completion.
Train impacted teams and prove it happened.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf can:
Build end-to-end regulatory change management policies and workflows
Create tracking tools, governance cadence, and evidence standards
Help implement changes operationally (not just “we updated a policy somewhere”)
Resolution #6: “We’re going to stop losing control of vendors and subservicers.”
If you have a subservicer, you’re still responsible. Which is a fun fact until it becomes a very expensive fact.
How to keep it
Define a subservicer oversight plan with clear performance standards.
Use scorecards: call center, loss mit, foreclosure timeline adherence, QC results, complaints, borrower experience.
Validate what you’re told with independent testing and file reviews.
Escalate early, not after the quarterly review when everyone is tired.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf delivers practical, investor-aligned:
Subservicer oversight frameworks and policies
KPI scorecards and reporting cadences
File review programs and targeted QC testing
Executive reporting that makes issues clear without creating a 97-tab monster tracker
Resolution #7: “We’re going to make our policies match what we actually do.”
Policies shouldn’t be aspirational fiction. If your policy says “we do X within 24 hours,” but operations does it in 7 days, your policy is basically writing checks your process can’t cash.
How to keep it
Perform a policy-to-process alignment review annually.
Make policies operational: steps, roles, thresholds, evidence, exceptions.
Assign ownership for policy upkeep, not just initial drafting.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf can:
Draft or refresh servicing policies and procedures that are detailed, implementable, and defensible
Align policies to regulatory requirements, investor guidelines, and actual workflow reality
Build documentation standards that make audits and exams less painful
Resolution #8: “We’re going to reduce operational chaos with smarter reporting.”
Not more reporting. Smarter reporting.
How to keep it
Identify the 10–15 KPIs that actually drive risk (not vanity stats).
Build a rhythm: weekly ops metrics, monthly compliance/QC metrics, quarterly executive story.
Ensure metrics have definitions (so teams don’t argue about what “timely” means).
How BlackWolf Advisory Group helps
BlackWolf helps servicers build:
KPI frameworks, scorecards, and dashboards
Executive reporting that is clear, concise, and defensible
Data-to-action governance (so dashboards don’t become “interesting art”)
The “Keeping Resolutions” Playbook for Servicers
Here’s the truth: most New Year’s resolutions fail because they’re based on motivation instead of structure. So don’t rely on motivation. Rely on mechanics.
A simple structure that works
Pick 3–5 priorities only (not 30 “strategic initiatives”)
Convert each into:
A measurable outcome
A monthly milestone
A named owner
A reporting cadence
Start small, prove it works, then scale
Use independent validation (QC, audits, oversight reviews) to confirm improvements stick
If you do this, your organization won’t be “trying to be better.” You’ll be operating better.
How BlackWolf Advisory Group Can Be Your “Resolution Insurance”
Think of BlackWolf as the partner that helps you go from:
“We should really improve that.”to
“Here’s the framework, here’s the evidence, here are the results.”
BlackWolf Advisory Group supports mortgage servicers across:
QC testing programs and automation strategy
Audit readiness and internal audit support
Regulatory compliance and change management
Subservicer oversight frameworks, scorecards, and governance
Operational risk and control frameworks
Policy and procedure development that actually works in production
And most importantly: we help you build programs that are sustainable—so you’re not reinventing the wheel every quarter, or depending on one heroic person with 37 open browser tabs.
A Final Resolution (The One Nobody Writes Down)
“We will stop accepting ‘this is how we’ve always done it’ as a valid reason.”
Because in mortgage servicing, “this is how we’ve always done it” is often just shorthand for:
“We don’t know who owns it,”
“We’re afraid to touch it,” or
“The spreadsheet has become sentient.”
Let’s make this the year your servicing operation is more proactive, more compliant, more efficient—and slightly less chaotic.