Changes to sales tax, improvements throughout Mercury in this update

There are changes to sales tax calculations in this release, as well as updates based on your input. Check the release notes for details, and see highlights below.

Sales tax changes

In states where we currently collect sales tax, we'll now calculate that tax based on the zip code of the person who's paying. Previously, we simply charged the lowest sales tax rate for the state, but going forward, we'll collect an accurate amount based on your state and local taxes. The states affected are Connecticut, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Utah and Washington.

Vendor document problem fixed

There were instances when a vendor pasted unprintable characters in the fields where they enter their license or insurance information before uploading a related document. When that happened, it produced an error if anyone went to review the document. We fixed this by preventing those characters from being entered in those fields.

VMP XSites improvements

You let us know about an issue where RealView Bridge wasn't working when it was enabled for a Client Group because it was turned off globally. Now, RealView Bridge will obey the Client Group settings regardless of the global setting.

There was also a problem which prevented a client from being saved if they only had the Permitted to place orders via integration permission enabled. We fixed that so you can now save clients with only that permission enabled.

Appraiser payment automation

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In the next few weeks, we look forward to beginning the pilot of the tools which will automate your appraiser payments workflow. As we've developed these features, one of our main goals is to provide you the flexibility to accommodate your workflow - specifically your paid-at-closing and paid-outside-closing items. To make this work, you'll be able to collect payments from your borrower via a PCI-compliant web page, then pay the appraiser based on customizable rules. Alternatively, if you collect a check from the borrower or use your own funds, the money is transferred from your operating account to the appraiser. Either way, paying your appraisers will be simplified by rules-based automatic payment via direct deposit to the appraiser’s bank account. Manual controls will handle exceptions in compliance, and year-end 1099s will be automated too!