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""Bank of America"":http://www.bankofamerica.com is experiencing a deluge of phone calls from homeowners wanting to refinance their mortgages. Consumer demand is so high, in fact, that without some sort of internal adjustment, it threatens to compromise the level of customer service delivered by the bank's fulfillment personnel and interfere with closing timelines.
[IMAGE]""We are not willing to sacrifice long-term customer satisfaction for short-term volume,"" said Terry Francisco, spokesperson for the North Carolina-based bank.
He says BofA decided to implement a stopgap measure that will ensure each and every borrower receives the type of service and assistance they've come to expect from their Bank of America representatives. In late January, the company instituted a ""reservation system"" throughout its call center network for refinance requests, Francisco explained in an interview with _DS News_.
This system kicks in during periods of high volume and alerts customers that BofA is experiencing a temporary delay in processing refinance applications. Borrowers' contact information is recorded and they receive a commitment from Bank of America to take up their refinance request within 60 days.
Francisco says relatively few of the bank's customers seeking refinance assistance receive this ""delay"" response, and he says a BofA staff member typically reconnects with
[COLUMN_BREAK]these borrowers and takes their application within a matter of weeks as opposed to two months.
Ed Delgado, CEO of the ""Five Star Institute"":http://www.thefivestar.com, says Bank of America's strategy is akin to a concierge service. ""It is a responsible way to handle consumer response during periods of excessive call volume in order to ensure they maintain the level of customer service that is expected,"" Delgado said.
January was a particularly strong month for Bank of America in terms of refinancing. With the high volume of refi applications flooding the company's offices, Francisco says BofA reasonably concluded, ""Customers would be unable to get a predictable closing date.""
Refi activity jumped 25 percent between December and January for Bank of America. The company was one of the first to begin offering homeowners the chance to refinance through a new and improved government program, which took shape as the second rendition of the Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP 2.0.
Francisco says the sharp increase in refi activity had a lot to do with the pent-up demand that was unleashed when HARP guidelines were relaxed, as well as the added visibility President Obama has lent to the refinancing market in recent weeks coupled with the current rate environment.
While consumer demand for mortgage refinancing is expected to remain strong, Francisco says BofA's reservation system is only temporary. ""Eventually, we will eliminate the need for this measure,"" he said.
The company is aggressively hiring fulfillment personnel to increase capacity and accept more refinance applications. Bank of America currently has more than 1,000 open requisitions for the refi side of its business.
""We are working hard to ensure that we can effectively respond to our customers' needs,"" Francisco said.
_Editor's Note: The Five Star Institute is the parent company of_ DS News _and DSNews.com._
