Certified Credit Reporting
Certified Credit Reporting is a privately held, U.S. mortgage-focused credit reporting and verification services provider founded in 1985, offering tri-merge credit reports, the Cascade Automation Suite (Alerts, Prequal, VOE, UDM), score improvement tools, fraud mitigation, and verifications to banks, credit unions, and independent mortgage lenders through deep Encompass and MeridianLink integrations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1985
- HeadquartersLaguna Niguel, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Certified Credit Reporting does
Certified Credit Reporting is a U.S. mortgage-focused credit reporting and verification services provider founded in 1985 and headquartered in Laguna Niguel, California, operating as a privately held, woman-owned (WBENC Certified) business. The company delivers tri-merge and single-bureau credit reports, refresh and mortgage comparison reports, business credit reports, and soft-pull prequalification reports to mortgage lenders, supplemented by a Cascade Automation Suite comprising Cascade Alerts (borrower shopping monitoring for customer retention), Cascade Prequal (soft-pull prequalification), Cascade VOE (rules-based automated verification of employment), and Cascade UDM (continuous undisclosed debt monitoring through closing). Adjacent modules include score improvement tools (FICO Score Mortgage Simulator, CreditXpert, Rapid Rescore, ScoreNavigator), a fraud and risk mitigation suite (ADV-120 Fraud Report, Flex ID Smart Select Shield, Wire Transfer Fraud Report, Liens & Judgements, MERS), property and valuation services (Flood Zone Determination, AVM), and additional verifications (VOA, VOD, 4506-C Tax Transcripts, SSA-89, VOM).
The technology stack is built around what the company describes as the largest mortgage service solutions SaaS platform in the industry, running across multiple data centers with redundancies, and integrating natively with Encompass (via Encompass Partner Connect), MeridianLink, Velocify, Surefire, and Shape CRM. The company maintains SSAE-18 SOC 2 Type 2, PCI-DSS, and SAFC-II (NCRA) certifications across its workforce and operates Dodd-Frank Section 342 Vendor status. A sister company, DataCheck, extends the platform into employment and tenant screening.
Commercially, Certified Credit operates a hybrid revenue model combining per-report transaction fees (credit reports, verifications, fraud reports, flood, AVM), subscription/recurring fees (Cascade Alerts, CreditXpert annual contracts, FICO Score Mortgage Simulator usage), and customized multi-year enterprise bundles (Front/Back-End bundles, Step-Up pricing, Smart Select, Smart Pay). Go-to-market is enterprise-led with dedicated account executives and client success managers ([email protected], 800-769-7615 Option 4), augmented by event-driven demand generation at TMC and ICE Experience conferences and a self-serve free-trial entry point on Cascade Alerts. Customers are banks, credit unions, independent mortgage bankers, and wholesale lenders across the United States; secondary segments (employment and tenant screening) are served through DataCheck.
Certified Credit Reporting firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Certified Credit Reporting
- Legal name
- Certified Credit Reporting
- Website
- https://certifiedcredit.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1985
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Certified Credit Reporting is a privately held, U.S. mortgage-focused credit reporting and verification services provider founded in 1985, offering tri-merge credit reports, the Cascade Automation Suite (Alerts, Prequal, VOE, UDM), score improvement tools, fraud mitigation, and verifications to banks, credit unions, and independent mortgage lenders through deep Encompass and MeridianLink integrations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Certified Credit Reporting industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mortgage Credit Reporting & Verification Software
- NAICS
- Credit Bureaus (56145), Credit Bureaus (561450), Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)
- SIC
- Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Credit Bureaus & Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies (FSAKAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Risk Analytics, Portfolio Monitoring & Early-Warning (Consumer Credit) (FSAKAKAH), Credit Education, Monitoring & Consumer Credit Management Tools (FSAKAKAJ), Income, Employment & Cash-Flow Verification (Consumer) (FSAKAKAE), Credit Repair & Credit Score Advisory (FSAEAFAD)
Keywords
Where Certified Credit Reporting is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Laguna Niguel
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Certified Credit Reporting business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Mortgage Credit Reporting Services: Revenue generated from tri-merge credit reports, single and dual bureau reports, and specialty credit products (Smart Select, Refresh Reports, Mortgage Comparison Reports, Business Credit Reports). Pricing is per-report or through bundled/creative pricing structures (Front/Back-End bundles, Step-Up pricing, Smart Select, Smart Pay).
- Cascade Automation Suite Subscriptions: Monthly/usage-based fees for the Cascade product family including Cascade Alerts, Cascade Prequal, Cascade VOE, and Cascade UDM. Cascade Alerts is offered month-to-month with no minimums after a one-month free trial. Cascade VOE offers pay-only-if-Cascade-returns-a-hit pricing.
- Verification Services: Verification of Employment (VOE), Verification of Assets, Verification of Deposit, 4506-C Tax Transcripts, Tax Wallet, SSA-89 Verification, Verification of Mortgage, Verification of Occupancy, and Tradeline Updates. These are transactional services ordered per verification.
- Fraud & Risk Mitigation Solutions: ADV-120 Fraud Reports, Wire Transfer Fraud Reports, Liens & Judgements Reports, Flex ID Smart Select Shield, MERS Reports, and ID Risk Review — ordered as individual reports or add-ons per loan file.
- Property & Valuation Services: Flood Zone Determinations (Basic and Life of Loan versions), Automated Valuation Models (AVMs), and related property services — charged per determination or valuation report.
- Score Improvement Tools: FICO Score Mortgage Simulator, CreditXpert (annual contract), Rapid Rescore, and ScoreNavigator tools — subscription or per-use fees for credit optimization and simulation services.
- Employment Screening (DataCheck): Certified Credit's sister company DataCheck provides employment background screening including criminal checks, MVR, drug screening, credit reports, and verification services to employers — billed per screening or on contract.
- Tenant Screening (DataCheck): Sister company DataCheck provides tenant screening including SSN validation, eviction history, criminal records, credit reports, and identity verification to landlords and property managers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | Multi-year contract | Custom pricing bundles (Front/Back-End bundles, Step-Up pricing, Smart Select, Smart Pay) |
| Subscription | Monthly | Cascade Alerts - Customer Retention |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Cascade VOE - Automated Verification of Employment |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Cascade UDM - Undisclosed Debt Monitoring |
| Usage-based | Annual | FICO Score Mortgage Simulator |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | FICO Score Royalty |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Prequal Soft Pull Credit Reports |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Flood Zone Determination |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels8 records
Certified Credit Reporting product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Certified Credit Reporting is a mortgage-focused credit reporting and verification provider that delivers tri-merge credit reports, automated verifications (VOE, VOA, VOD), fraud mitigation reports, property/valuation tools, and score improvement tools to U.S. mortgage lenders. Its Cascade Automation Suite layers automation, alerts, prequalification, undisclosed debt monitoring, and rules-based VOE on top of the credit reporting core to reduce pipeline fallout and repurchase risk across the loan lifecycle.
Product overview
Certified Credit is a mortgage credit reporting and verification services provider offering a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product is Credit Reports (tri-merge, soft pull prequalification, refresh, and business credit reports). The Cascade Automation Suite (comprising Cascade Alerts, Cascade Prequal, Cascade VOE, and Cascade UDM) provides workflow automation across the mortgage lending lifecycle. Add-on modules include Score Improvement Tools (FICO Score Mortgage Simulator, CreditXpert, Rapid Rescore, ScoreNavigator), Fraud & Risk Mitigation Suite (ADV-120 Fraud Report, Flex ID Smart Select Shield, Wire Transfer Fraud Report, Liens & Judgements Report), Property & Valuation (Flood Zone Determination, AVM), Verifications (VOE, VOD, VOM, SSA-89, 4506-C Tax Transcripts), Employment Screening via DataCheck, and Tenant Screening via DataCheck. The platform runs on a SaaS architecture with extensive LOS integrations (Encompass, MeridianLink) and CRM integrations (Velocify, Surefire, Shape).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- DataCheck: Sister company providing full-service background investigation services including employment screening and tenant screening
- Cascade
- Cascade Alerts
- Cascade Prequal
- Cascade VOE
- Cascade UDM
- FICO Score Mortgage Simulator
- CreditXpert
- ScoreNavigator
Products and services
- Credit Reports
Quantifiable outcome
- 6.3% customer retention rate on Cascade Alerts campaign with 34 loans closed from 540 competitor mortgage inquiry alerts
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Certified Credit Reporting
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Certified Credit Reporting technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability7 records
Feature8 records
Certified Credit Reporting partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- MeridianLinkcoreCertified Credit operates a dedicated integration with MeridianLink's mortgage services platform (certifiedcredit.meridianlink.com) enabling lenders to order credit reports, verifications, and Cascade automation products directly through MeridianLink's LOS. The companies co-sponsored TMC's 'A Mile Above' Monday Happy Hour event, demonstrating a strong GTM partnership within the mortgage technology ecosystem.
- Encompass ( Ellie Mae)coreCertified Credit is an Encompass Partner Connect (EPC) partner with deep integration into the Encompass LOS platform. Recent enhancements include EPC capabilities for adjusting applicants without repulling credit (upgrade/swap/unmerge), auto import of liabilities, invoice import to eFolder, prequalification report automation, closed loan pricing through automation, UDM surrogate ordering, and use-case based credit ordering.
- FICOcoreCertified Credit offers the FICO Score Mortgage Simulator, the only authorized simulation tool built by FICO's own analytics team using the trusted FICO Score algorithm. Certified Credit, powered by Xedalink, is among the first platforms to bring FICO Smart Plans and FICO Score Potential features to market. The platform supports FICO Score 2, 4, and 5 and is designed to evolve with FICO 10T.
- DataCheckcoreDataCheck is Certified Credit's sister company and full-service background investigation provider for employment and tenant screening. DataCheck specializes in criminal background checks, MVR, drug screening, credit reports, and verification services, offering a dedicated platform (datacheckinc.com) for these screening solutions that extends Certified Credit's service portfolio beyond mortgage into broader screening services.
- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC)minorCertified Credit actively partners with The Mortgage Collaborative, attending and sponsoring TMC conferences (Dallas 'Live Large, Think BIG', Denver 'A Mile Above', Louisville 'The Mane Event') with partner showcases. TMC is a mortgage industry network providing peer-to-peer learning and business development for independent mortgage bankers.
- ICE (Intercontinental Exchange)minorCertified Credit attends ICE Experience conferences (Las Vegas 2025, 2026), showcasing its advanced technology and exceptional service as part of the mortgage industry's leading technology and compliance event.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Certified Credit Reporting competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Informative Research: Direct peer offering mortgage credit reports, verifications, and flood/AVM services to lenders; competes head-to-head with Certified Credit across the mortgage credit-reporting workflow that is Certified Credit's core.
- Xactus (formerly ServiceLink): Direct peer in mortgage credit verifications and flood services, also serving large lender and servicer customers with workflow-integrated verification products analogous to Certified Credit's Cascade suite.
- Factual Data: National consumer credit reporting agency that competes with Certified Credit on tri-merge credit reports, verifications, and mortgage-focused screening solutions.
- CBCInnovis: Specialty consumer credit reporting agency serving mortgage and financial services lenders with credit reports and related data products, directly comparable to Certified Credit's bureau-reseller model.
Broad incumbents
- ICE Mortgage Technology (CoreLogic / Black Knight): Dominant incumbent in mortgage technology that bundles credit, verification, AVM, flood, and fraud inside LOS contracts, competing with Certified Credit both as a software partner and as a feature substitute.
- Equifax: One of the three national credit bureaus and a broad incumbent in consumer credit data, scoring, and identity verification; competes with Certified Credit as both upstream data supplier and direct provider of credit and monitoring products.
- Experian: Major credit bureau and analytics provider serving mortgage lenders with credit reports, scoring, fraud, and analytics; competes with Certified Credit across credit reporting and adjacent analytics offerings.
- TransUnion: National credit bureau offering consumer credit reports, trended data, and mortgage-focused analytics and fraud tools; competes with Certified Credit on tri-merge and specialty credit reporting.
Emerging players
- FormFree: Emerging player in asset, employment, and income verification for mortgage lenders; overlaps with Certified Credit's Cascade VOE and verification suite as a digital-native challenger.
- Plaid: Emerging player in consumer-permissioned financial data and account verification; competes at the margins with Certified Credit's verification and asset-verification offerings through API-driven lender integrations.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Certified Credit Reporting social profiles
Digital presenceCertified Credit Reporting compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance5 records
Certified Credit Reporting financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Certified Credit Reporting leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Certified Credit Reporting subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Certified Credit Reporting funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Certified Credit Reporting M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Certified Credit Reporting
What does Certified Credit Reporting do?
Certified Credit Reporting is a mortgage-focused credit reporting and verification provider that delivers tri-merge credit reports, automated verifications (VOE, VOA, VOD), fraud mitigation reports, property/valuation tools, and score improvement tools to U.S. mortgage lenders. Its Cascade Automation Suite layers automation, alerts, prequalification, undisclosed debt monitoring, and rules-based VOE on top of the credit reporting core to reduce pipeline fallout and repurchase risk across the loan lifecycle.
Is Certified Credit Reporting a public or private company?
Certified Credit Reporting is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Certified Credit Reporting founded?
Certified Credit Reporting was founded in 1985. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Certified Credit Reporting based?
Certified Credit Reporting is headquartered in Laguna Niguel, United States, in the North America region.
How does Certified Credit Reporting make money?
Eight revenue lines are on record. Mortgage Credit Reporting Services are the primary driver. The others are cascade Automation Suite Subscriptions, verification Services, fraud & Risk Mitigation Solutions, property & Valuation Services, score Improvement Tools, employment Screening (DataCheck) and tenant Screening (DataCheck).
Who are Certified Credit Reporting's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Informative Research, Xactus (formerly ServiceLink), Factual Data and CBCInnovis. Broad incumbents are ICE Mortgage Technology (CoreLogic / Black Knight), Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Emerging players are FormFree and Plaid.
Does Certified Credit Reporting have an API?
Yes. Certified Credit offers API integrations for automated ordering, alert delivery, and CRM integration. The Cascade UDM delivers alerts via email or API. Cascade Alerts supports CRM integration (Velocify, Surefire, Shape) with customizable alert delivery via SMS, email, and CRM integration. The platform integrates with Encompass (Encompass Partner Connect) for credit ordering, invoice import, prequalification automation, and undisclosed debt monitoring ordering. MeridianLink is referenced as a login/ordering platform.
What industry is Certified Credit Reporting in?
Certified Credit Reporting's product category is Mortgage Credit Reporting & Verification Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAKAKAA, Credit Bureaus & Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies, with a secondary code of FSAKAKAH, Risk Analytics, Portfolio Monitoring & Early-Warning (Consumer Credit). Its NAICS code is 56145 and its SIC code is 7320.