Date of Conferral

2017

Degree

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)

School

Business Administration

Advisor

William Stokes

Abstract

The mortgage industry played a major role in the recession faced by the U.S. economy in 2008, with approximately 8.8 million borrowers, or 10.8% of all homeowners, with negative equity in their homes. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies mortgage loan executives use to prequalify mortgage loan applicants. The target population consisted of 8 mortgage executives at 5 mortgage lending firms located in northwest Arkansas who demonstrated strategies to enhance the prequalification of mortgage loan applicants. The conceptual framework for the study was the theory of asymmetric information. In-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted and the home loan toolkit and standard disclosure packets were reviewed. The data analysis technique used in this study followed Yin's 5-step data analysis process. Each interview response was interpreted, synthesized, and shared with the participant for validation during the follow-up member checking meeting. I coded the data to identify similarities in the data and prevalent themes, and to align the new data with previous literature. Based on methodological triangulation and thematic analysis, 4 themes emerged: counseling, government guidelines and regulation, disclosure, and literacy. Social change benefits include a more knowledgeable mortgage consumer that will benefit from enhanced education by the mortgage lender, which may result in lower mortgage defaults. This can increase homeowners' self-esteem, provide for community growth and development, and stabilize, and eventually grow, property tax revenues that could strengthen communities by expanding services and improving infrastructure.

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