LoanScorecard review
LoanScorecard is a Mortgage Pricing Engine product from Ciao, Inc.. MortgageTechReview scores LoanScorecard 2.6 out of 5.0, ranking LoanScorecard #10 of the 12 products tracked in Mortgage Pricing Engine Software, as of August 11, 2026. Scores on MortgageTechReview are weighted across five axes and are never paid for or influenced by a vendor relationship.
LoanScorecard, operating as Ciao, Inc., sells non-agency automated underwriting first and pricing second. Portfolio Underwriter issues documented findings on loans Desktop Underwriter and Loan Product Advisor will not touch. Pricer1 puts product and pricing in front of loan officers and third-party originators, capturing the lock in the same step. For a bank or credit union holding loans, the findings report is the product, the paper behind an ability-to-repay call. The worry is momentum. Press activity runs heavily 2018 through 2022, naming Carrington, Deephaven, Newfi and Angel Oak, and little shows since.
How LoanScorecard compares to Optimal Blue
Ranked first in PPEOptimal Blue currently scores highest in PPE, so every other product in the category is compared against it here. That is a ranking on our published rubric rather than a recommendation, and it changes when the scores change. Category Leader
| Axis | LoanScorecard | Optimal Blue |
|---|---|---|
| Production impact | 2.6 | 4.9 |
| Functionality & depth | 3.0 | 4.9 |
| Integrations & ecosystem | 1.8 | 4.9 |
| Adoption & support | 2.7 | 4.4 |
| Return on spend | 2.8 | 4.0 |
| Overall | 2.6 | 4.8 |
LoanScorecard wins 0 of 5 axes against Optimal Blue, on the weight profile published for this category. Full head-to-head →
Where it wins
- Portfolio Underwriter issues documented findings for non-agency and portfolio loans
- Pricer1 packs search, scenario templates, borrower contacts and lock tracking into a branded app
- Proven with named non-QM lenders: Carrington, Newfi, A&D Mortgage, Nations Direct
- Built around compliance duties such as QM and CECL, not price alone
Where it falls short
- Names no integrations at all, not even LOS partners or API docs
- Press activity thins sharply after 2022, which questions current investment
- Pricing is a demo conversation, with no tiers and no stated licensing model
- Pricer1 is a quoting tool, not a secondary engine with margin depth
Why it scores 2.6
Scored on the Pricing & Eligibility weight profile. The number shows where it sits in this category. It rests on evidence anyone can check, including the vendor's own record. The weights →
Production impact
25% of scoreThe gain lands only on files you would otherwise underwrite by hand. Portfolio Underwriter returns a documented finding on non-agency loans, and Pricer1 puts eligibility in front of originators and captures the lock request in the same step. Carrington, Newfi, A&D Mortgage and Nations Direct run it behind their own branded products. For a shop whose book is mostly agency that is a narrow slice of production, and the effect scales strictly with how much non-agency you write.
Functionality and depth
35% of scoreAs a pricing tool this is less than a PPE. Pricer1 covers product search, scenario templates, borrower contact storage and quote and lock tracking in a branded app, and stops there. Margin management and secondary desk workflow are not the focus, so a lock desk gets nothing to run on. Portfolio Underwriter is where the real depth sits, with non-agency findings, bank statement analysis, fair lending checks and CECL support, but that is a decisioning module rather than an engine.
Integrations and ecosystem
20% of scoreNothing is named. There is no integrations page, no LOS partner list, and API documentation is not reachable from the site. The press archive shows LoanScorecard powering lender-branded platforms at Sprout, LoanStream, Oaktree Funding and Deephaven, so API work clearly exists somewhere. None of it is documented where a buyer can check it. For a product meant to sit inside your originators’ daily workflow, that leaves every connectivity question to a sales call.
Adoption and support
10% of scoreRound-the-clock training, a dedicated support team and a resource library are advertised, and the company has operated as Ciao, Inc. since around 2010, so this is not a thin startup. What sits against that is silence. Press activity thins sharply after 2022, and quiet years tend to show up in release cadence and in how fast support answers. Ask current customers what has actually shipped since then before you rely on the roadmap.
Return on spend
10% of scoreFor a bank or credit union with a portfolio product and no automated underwriting, the comparison is against manual underwriting plus a hand-built compliance file, and it goes the buyer’s way. Everyone else is buying a second decisioning layer on top of a pricing engine they already pay for, because Pricer1 will not replace that engine. Pricing is a demo conversation with no tiers and no licensing model, so the whole case gets built in the room.
On price. Quote only. No pricing appears for Portfolio Underwriter or Pricer1. The site gives no hint whether the model is per-decision or per-seat.
