How to maximize the ROI of your mortgage origination technology investments

Investing in technology has become a non-negotiable for mortgage lenders striving to stay competitive in an increasingly complex and volatile market. However, making the investment is only the first step—ensuring a high return on investment (ROI) requires strategic planning, execution and ongoing evaluation. Whether you’re upgrading your loan origination system (LOS), implementing advanced data analytics tools or enhancing your borrower-facing technology, following the best practices outlined below will help you unlock the true value of your tech investments.

1. Define clear goals and KPIs

Before adopting new technology, it’s critical to outline what success looks like for your organization. What specific challenges are you aiming to solve? Whether it’s reducing loan cycle times, improving borrower satisfaction or streamlining compliance processes, align your goals with measurable key performance indicators (KPIs). For example:

Clearly defined goals ensure that everyone—from your IT team to executive leadership—is working toward the same outcomes.

2. Focus on enterprise-wide integration

A common mistake that mortgage lenders make is choosing technology in silos, leading to inefficiencies and fragmentation. To maximize ROI, aim for enterprise-wide integration. For instance, your LOS should seamlessly integrate with CRM platforms, point-of-sale systems and compliance tools. When systems work together, data flows freely, minimizing redundancies and enhancing productivity.

As an example, many forward thinking mortgage lenders are working towards combining borrower data from their CRM with their LOS to create a single system of record for engaging customers from lead to closed loan through the capital markets. This integrated “end to end” technology not only speeds up the loan process, but also delivers personalized borrower experiences, improving satisfaction and retention.

3. Invest in employee training and adoption

Even the most advanced technology is only as effective as the people using it. Without proper training, adoption may lag, eroding your ROI. Mortgage lenders often underestimate the importance of bringing employees up to speed with new tools. To address this, we’ve seen successful mortgage lenders focus on:

One thing is certain across any industry - the faster your organization embraces the technology, the quicker you’ll start seeing results.

4. Prioritize scalability and flexibility

Given the cyclical nature of the mortgage industry, your technology must be built to scale up or down based on market conditions. Cloud-based systems, for example, allow you to adjust capacity as needed without expensive overhauls. Additionally, investing in flexible solutions that can adapt to regulatory changes ensures you’re prepared for compliance challenges ahead. If you’re one of the many mortgage lenders focusing on scaling your business in 2025, it’s important to choose vendors who continually update their systems to stay aligned with industry trends and regulatory environments, so you can future-proof your investment.

5. Leverage data and analytics for decision-making

Data and analytics can turn mountains of loan data into actionable insights. Advanced technology enables mortgage lenders to identify inefficiencies, assess borrower behaviors and predict trends. For instance:

By leveraging analytics collected from trusted data sourced from your lending platform, you can make data-driven decisions that directly improve efficiency, profitability and customer satisfaction.

6. Monitor and measure ROI over time

Adopting technology isn’t a “set it and forget it” process. Regularly evaluate the ROI of your systems to ensure they're delivering value based on your initial goals and objectives. This involves tracking KPIs, gathering employee and borrower feedback, and revisiting your technology roadmap.

As you monitor the ongoing performance and adoption of your investment, we recommend asking questions like:

Use these insights to continuously optimize and refine your adoption and utilization strategy in pursuit of achieving your initial business objectives.

Insights from the 2024 Encompass ROI study

To validate these principles, ICE partnered with MarketWise Advisors, LLC, an independent market research firm, to investigate and identify the impact technology adoption has on the mortgage industry across five KPIs:

The study showed that, on average, lenders who adopted integrated, data-driven, automation-ready lending platforms, like Encompass, and fully adopted the technology across their organization reduced operational cycle times by three days, increased operational leverage by 23%, reduced error rates by 13% and increased gross profit per loan by $1,056.

With the high cost of origination ($12,485 per loan, per the MBA 2023 Q4), every opportunity to improve efficiency, reduce costs, improve profitability and improve cycle times in the loan origination process is important for lenders. The findings show that by fully adopting technology, lenders more than offset the cost of the technology and truly maximize their ROI. The study also underscores the importance of treating technology investments not as one-time expenditures, but as long-term enablers of efficiency and profitability. By prioritizing strategic integration, workforce adoption and ongoing measurement, your organization can achieve similar levels of success.

Planning for the future

For mortgage lenders, technology represents an unparalleled opportunity to increase efficiency, cut costs and deliver exceptional borrower experiences. However, maximizing ROI requires more than just making the initial investment—it demands a thoughtful approach that includes clear goal-setting, seamless integration, robust training and regular ROI monitoring.

By following these best practices and leveraging findings from the Encompass ROI study, your organization can unlock the full potential of your technology investments. Take the first step today, and your business will be better positioned to thrive in an increasingly competitive market.