10 origination abbreviations every mortgage pro must know

Mortgage originators use jargon as shorthand to help speed their internal processes. These terms will be recited by managers, loan officers, underwriters, processors and closers. But this short hand is a key to getting a loan through the process in the most efficient way possible.

But as anyone who deals with consumers knows, the user has to be able to explain what a term means using common words that the client is able to understand. Especially because the customers lack that mental "English-to-mortgage-jargon" dictionary that industry participants have in their heads.

And they should have plenty of opportunities to educate their borrowers. Despite rising interest rates, mortgage originations are expected to remain strong this year as pent-up demand for homeownership drives the purchase market.

Loan originations in 2018 are projected to be around $1.6 trillion, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, or $1.7 trillion, according to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. That is not a small number.

(For reference purposes, the first time the mortgage industry had over $1 trillion in originations was in 1993; it did not cross that threshold again until 1998, according to the MBA's data. Annual originations have not been below $1 trillion since then, with the worst year being in 2014 at $1.26 trillion).

So take a few minutes and test your knowledge of these key abbreviations from the origination sector of the mortgage industry.

Take a look at the category and clue when making your guess before flipping to the next slide to see the answer.

Want more? Check out these other mortgage abbreviation quizzes:

10 mortgage abbreviations everyone in the industry should know

10 more abbreviations every mortgage pro must know

10 servicing abbreviations every mortgage pro must know

10 purchase market abbreviations every mortgage pro must know

Fannie Mae's Desktop Underwriter and Freddie Mac's Loan Prospector are this type of technology.