[September 27, 2005]

Harbourton Mortgage to Launch Portellus' Broker Portal; Broker-Facing Solution Offers Powerful Decisioning and Rapid AU Approvals at the Point of Sale

SANTA ROSA, Calif. & IRVINE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Sept. 27, 2005 -- Harbourton Mortgage Investment Corp. (HMIC), a national wholesale lender, and Portellus Inc., a leading provider of technology tools and services for the financial services industry, announced that it is launching Portellus' broker portal solution to its entire broker network. The Web portal helps brokers to close more loans faster by providing real-time access to pricing, pre-qualifications, credit/debt management and automated credit approvals at the point of sale. The solution is scheduled to go live in the fourth quarter of 2005.

Portellus' broker portal solution is out-of-the-box, but has been customized to HMIC's specific program offerings, and private brand labeled to reflect the company's preferred look and feel. The solution is being marketed to HMIC's brokers under the name of HELPS, or Harbourton Electronic Loan Processing Solution.

"The Portellus platform enables HELPS to deliver convenience, widespread efficiencies and rapid transaction processing to better serve our most important customer -- our brokers," said Steve Bowman, president of HMIC. "The entire HELPS program is designed to improve the 'broker experience' using technology, and this solution accomplished that in spades. Our brokers are in the trenches working hard to win new business; HMIC wants to be known as the lender that provides the point-of-sale technology tools that help make them more successful."

Key functionality within the broker portal includes automated best-fit product and pricing determination, the ability to pull/re-pull credit, debt management and deal structuring, view up-to-date pipeline loan status, rate-lock capability, and AU approvals complete with pricing, underwriting conditions and exceptions.

"Because HMIC will be utilizing our loan origination system (LOS), business rules management system (BRMS) and automated underwriting system (AUS), launching our broker portal was a natural, and will enable HMIC to quickly and easily move powerful decisioning directly to the point of sale for their broker network," explained John Le, CEO of Portellus. "Portellus' BRMS empowers lenders to actually write and implement new rules without the direct help of a software developer or IT manager. As a result, when HMIC has a change to their programs and pricing, or wants to launch a new product, they can quickly implement these changes and subsequently push those changes to their broker portal in real time. The rapid time to market this type of next-generation system permits creates a significant competitive advantage for lenders that use it in conjunction with a portal."

HELPS is designed to create a higher pull-through rate, provide ease of doing business, elevate customer service, reduce loan origination costs, facilitate broker-lender loyalty, and increase overall efficiencies for both HMIC and its brokers.

About HMIC

Based in Santa Rosa and founded in 2001, HMIC is a national wholesale lender specializing in Alt A and subprime loans. The company has achieved its rapid growth through market-leading products and price coupled with a commitment to top service. In addition to the corporate location, HMIC currently lends in 28 states from its other California location in Irvine as well as its newest office in McLean, Va. For more information, please visit www.hmic.com or call 877-393-7771.

About Portellus

With headquarters in Irvine, Portellus Inc. is a leader in the application of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) for the mortgage banking and insurance industries. The company's Decision Management Solutions, Business Rules Management System, Mortgage Solutions Framework, and Insurance Rating and Underwriting Engine seamlessly integrate with existing systems to enable clients to gain competitive advantages, reduce costs, mitigate risk, increase profitability and enter new markets. For more information, please visit www.portellus.com or call 949-250-9600.

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