Lee-Lee Ready™ × Fifth Third Pilot
Platform features · Consistency framework · Pilot design
Who benefits
BorrowerClear path · Re-entry when life interrupts · No confusion
CounselorLess admin · Consistent guidance · More coaching time
Lender (5/3)Visibility · Cleaner referrals · Recovered pipeline
Key numbers
25–40%Fallout after lender investment
$2–5KAcquisition cost per borrower
0%Visibility post-referral today
25–75Pilot cohort size
TBDPilot duration
5/3 pain points
1Black box referrals”We send them… never hear back.”
2Inconsistent counseling quality”Different levels of knowledge.”
3No follow-up system”Drop off, never pick back up.”
4Not ready for opportunities”Had to be ready at the right time.”
5Engagement breaks down”People leave excited… nothing happens.”
6Barrier isn’t just credit”Not how to calculate — what it means.”
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Lee-Lee Ready™ — Project Video
https://youtu.be/DfKThSdDEUo?si=T2eTlSwkMXjNEoF9
The system isn’t broken because counseling doesn’t exist. It’s broken because counseling is inconsistent, disconnected, and invisible to the lender after the referral happens.
What breaks down — and where
🌑Referrals become a black boxLoan officers refer borrowers and lose all visibility. No tracking. No updates. Borrowers either disappear or return through a competitor — after 5/3 already spent to acquire them.
⚡Counseling quality is wildly inconsistentBorrowers receive different — sometimes contradictory — guidance depending on the counselor. Credit myths persist. DTI realities go unexplained. “Not ready” has no standard definition across agencies.
📭No structured follow-up or re-engagementBorrowers who leave excited disengage due to life pressures, confusion, or fatigue. No automated nudges. No milestone tracking. No re-entry path. They simply fall through the cracks.
⏱Borrowers aren’t ready when opportunity arrivesDown payment programs, rate buydowns, and grant opportunities are short-lived and competitive. Families miss them because preparation is too late or not aligned with real program requirements.
🔩The real barrier isn’t just creditGig income, self-employment, realistic DTI ratios, and market realities are misunderstood upstream. Education must address what underwriting actually requires — not just how to calculate a number.
Core platform capabilities
🤖AI Readiness AgentBorrowerCounselorLenderTrained on counselor-approved, source-verified content. Guides borrowers through intake, explains mortgage requirements, and answers questions 24/7 via web, voice, SMS, or chat. Eliminates credit myths at the source.
📋Source-Verified Readiness CurriculumBorrowerCounselorStandardized, HUD-aligned education replaces ad hoc counselor guidance. Every borrower receives the same accurate information on DTI, credit, income types, reserves, and program eligibility — regardless of agency or counselor.
📊Shared Readiness Milestone DashboardCounselorLenderReplaces the referral black box. Borrowers, counselors, and 5/3 loan officers operate from the same real-time view of readiness progression. Progressive milestones — not binary ready/not-ready — create a shared language.
💬AI + SMS + Voice Follow-Up EngineBorrowerCounselorAutomated reminders, next-step nudges, scheduling support, and re-entry navigation keep borrowers engaged without adding counselor workload. When life interrupts, the system re-engages so borrowers don’t start over.
📄Secure Document Upload + Optical Character Recognition (OCR)BorrowerCounselorBorrowers upload income, asset, and liability documents anytime. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) — technology that reads and converts text from uploaded documents like pay stubs, bank statements, and tax returns into usable digital data — and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) — software that mimics repetitive tasks like calculating DTI, updating client files, and sending reminders automatically — work together to eliminate manual entry and reduce document cycle times, all with bank-level security.
🔗CMS Integration — Works Alongside Existing SystemsCounselorLenderDoes not replace HUD-approved client management systems. Layers on top of them — plug-and-play adoption with no expensive equipment or retraining required. Agencies can start immediately.
📈Near-Real-Time Analytics + CRA ReportingLenderCounselorDashboards surface engagement rates, drop-off points, document cycle times, and lender pull-through data. CRA-aligned outcome documentation is built in — not bolted on — continuously capturing LMI impact.
🏠Structured Return-to-Lender PathwayBorrowerLenderWhen a borrower crosses the readiness threshold, the platform triggers a structured notification to the originating 5/3 loan officer — not a competitor. Clear signal replaces vague “maybe someday” timelines.
“There are different levels of knowledge… some of them are ineffective.” — 5/3 field feedback
For the borrower — same experience regardless of when, where, or how they engage
🕐24/7 availability via web, SMS, voice, or chatNo waiting for a counselor appointment for basic questions. The AI agent is available any hour — meeting borrowers in survival mode or Sunday night worry, not just during office hours.
✅Same verified answer, every timeCredit guidance, DTI explanation, income type requirements — all sourced from counselor-approved, HUD-aligned content. No myths. No contradictions between agencies or sessions.
🔄Re-entry without starting overWhen life interrupts — job change, family event, financial stress — borrowers re-enter at their milestone, not square one. Context is preserved. Momentum is protected.
For the counselor — less variability, less admin
📚Standardized curriculum replaces ad hoc guidanceCounselors don’t have to be experts on every program or edge case. The platform handles source-verified education so counselors focus on coaching, relationships, and problem-solving.
⚙️Automation handles reminders, scheduling, and next stepsRobotic Process Automation (RPA) — software that mimics repetitive tasks like calculating DTI, updating client files, and triggering reminders automatically — manages follow-up, document reminders, calculation checks, and file updates, freeing counselor time from paperwork for meaningful client interaction.
🔍AI quality monitoring and bias testingOngoing monitoring ensures AI-delivered guidance remains accurate, equitable, and compliant. Counselors retain decision authority. AI handles consistency at scale.
For Fifth Third — consistent signals, not noise
🎯Shared definition of “mortgage-ready”Today “mortgage-ready” means something different to every counselor. Lee-Lee Ready™ establishes milestone-based criteria aligned with actual underwriting standards — so 5/3 knows exactly what a readiness flag means.
📡Lender-aligned reporting and coordinationReplaces ad hoc referrals with verified readiness signals. 5/3 receives consistent, structured updates — no chasing, no guessing, no black box. Biweekly pilot reporting included.
📰CRA documentation built in, not retrofittedLMI engagement tracking, documented borrower outcomes, and readiness progression captured continuously — ready for CRA reporting without additional administrative work from the 5/3 team.
Source: The pain points and priorities reflected in this solution map were informed by a direct conversation with Daniel Baechle at Fifth Third Bank (Daniel.Baechle@53.com), whose first-hand field perspective shaped how Lee-Lee Ready™ is positioned to address 5/3’s specific challenges.
Pain point → platform feature → outcome for 5/3
Black box referrals — no visibility after handoff→Shared milestone dashboard gives 5/3 real-time borrower progress — no more guessing
Inconsistent counselor guidance and credit myths→Source-verified AI curriculum delivers the same accurate guidance to every borrower, every time
No follow-up — borrowers fall through the cracks→AI + SMS + voice follow-up engine re-engages automatically — counselors coach, not chase
Borrowers not ready when programs and opportunities open→Readiness threshold alerts notify 5/3 the moment a borrower crosses into mortgage-ready status
Lost momentum — life interrupts the journey→Re-entry pathways resume at the borrower’s milestone — not square one — preventing dropout
DTI, income type, market realities misunderstood→Early education on real underwriting requirements sets accurate expectations before applications
Referred borrowers return through a competitor→Structured return pathway keeps the relationship anchored to the originating 5/3 loan officer
CRA outcomes hard to document and demonstrate→LMI tracking, documented outcomes, and readiness data built in — CRA reporting is continuous
Tracking capabilities
📍Borrower-level milestone tracking
Every borrower’s journey is tracked through defined readiness stages — from initial intake through document completion, education modules, credit improvement, and final readiness certification. 5/3 loan officers see exactly where each referred borrower stands at any point in time.
🔔Real-time alert and notification system
Automated alerts notify the originating 5/3 loan officer when a borrower crosses a key milestone — credit threshold met, DTI in range, documents complete, or full readiness achieved. No manual check-ins required. The system surfaces the right borrower at the right moment.
📂Drop-off and re-engagement tracking
The platform identifies exactly where borrowers disengage — which module, which step, which document request — and automatically triggers re-engagement outreach. Drop-off patterns are logged and surfaced in the 5/3 dashboard so systemic friction points can be addressed.
🗂️Pipeline visibility across the full cohort
5/3 sees the entire referred cohort — not just individual borrowers — with aggregate views showing how many are in early education, mid-readiness, near-ready, or returned to lending. Full pipeline visibility replaces the current “refer and forget” model.
Metrics driven — what gets measured
Borrower metrics
— Engagement rate by channel (web, SMS, voice)
— Milestone completion rate and average time per stage
— Document upload and cycle time
— Credit score change over pilot period
— DTI improvement trajectory
— Drop-off rate and re-engagement success rate
— Return-to-lender conversion rate
Lender + CRA metrics
— Pipeline recovery rate (declined → mortgage-ready)
— Application submission rate from returned borrowers
— Pull-through rate vs. non-counseled baseline
— Cost per readiness outcome vs. acquisition cost
— LMI households engaged and documented
— CRA-eligible outcomes by segment
— Lender ROI on pilot cohort investment
This is not another counseling referral. It’s not new tech for the sake of tech. It’s the missing infrastructure between counseling and lending — built around the specific challenges Daniel Baechle and the 5/3 team identified directly.
Proposed pilot structure
Cohort size25–75 borrowersLow operational lift
DurationTBDBiweekly 5/3 updates
FocusDeclined / borderlineCRA-eligible + LMI
Borrower journey — 4 steps
Step 1 · Referral and immediate intake5/3 refers a declined or borderline borrower via a defined process. Within 24 hours, Lee-Lee Ready™ engages via the borrower’s preferred channel — web, SMS, voice, or chat. AI agent conducts structured intake and explains the path forward clearly.
Step 2 · Source-verified readiness educationAI curriculum delivers consistent, accurate guidance on credit, DTI, income documentation, program eligibility, and realistic home-buying timelines. Same quality, every borrower — no myths, no conflicting advice. Documents are uploaded and processed via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) — technology that reads pay stubs, bank statements, and tax returns and converts them into usable digital data — automatically.
Step 3 · Milestone progression with shared visibilityBorrower advances through defined readiness milestones. Both the counseling agency and 5/3 loan officer see the same real-time dashboard. Automated follow-up nudges keep momentum. Re-entry pathways activate if life interrupts. No black box — ever.
Step 4 · Readiness alert + return to 5/3When the borrower crosses the mortgage-ready threshold, the platform triggers a structured notification to the originating 5/3 loan officer. The borrower returns with a cleaner profile, accurate expectations, and documented readiness — not to a competitor.
Success metrics
— Borrower engagement rate— Readiness milestone progression
— Document cycle time reduction— Credit / profile improvement
— Counselor workload change— Return-to-lender rate
— Application conversion— CRA-documented outcomes
— AI intake accuracy— Drop-off rate vs. baseline
What each party gains
Borrower
Clear, trusted entry point available any time, any channel. No fear of judgment. No confusion about where to start. Accurate guidance that matches what lenders actually need. A path that waits for them when life gets hard — not one that abandons them.
Counselor / Agency
Less time on paperwork, more time on coaching. Consistent curriculum removes the burden of being an expert on everything. Automation handles reminders and scheduling. And critically — counseling agencies shift from grant-dependent to earning revenue for measurable outcomes.
Fifth Third Bank
Visibility: Real-time dashboard replaces the referral black box. Know where every borrower stands at all times.
Recovery: Recover pipeline you’ve already invested in — declined and borderline borrowers who would otherwise be lost.
Retention: Structured return pathway keeps borrowers anchored to 5/3 — not competitors.
Quality: Better-prepared borrowers arrive with realistic expectations, cleaner profiles, and faster time-to-close.
CRA: Documented LMI engagement, readiness outcomes, and community impact — built in, continuous, ready to report.
Your pipeline isn’t broken — it’s losing borrowers you’ve already invested in. Lee-Lee Ready™ helps you capture and convert them.
Proposed next steps
01Agree on pilot cohort size and CRA-eligible segment definition
02Execute MOU between StartingNow Corporation and Fifth Third
03Define referral workflow, shared dashboard access, and reporting cadence
04Build application
05Launch initial cohort within x days of MOU execution
