REO

A new study by analytics firm Interthinx says mortgage fraud risk has been spreading from ZIP code to ZIP code. The company's quarterly Mortgage Fraud Risk Report covers data collected from the fourth quarter of 2010 and tracks overall and type-specific mortgage fraud risk. It provides an in-depth analysis of fraud risk from specific ZIP codes. The report shows that previously localized risks in one or more ZIP codes are in danger of spreading throughout a metropolitan area.

Equator launched a new Web site Friday along with three new modules: Loan Segmentation, REO Segmentation, and Invoice Management. The company says these new modules will seamlessly interface with existing modules to offer an end-to-end default suite to assist servicers with upcoming inventories.

Federal regulators have amended their interagency appraisal and evaluation guidelines for real estate transactions, and confusion has set in. According to Pro Teck Valuation Services, the 70 pages of hard-to-decipher rules and conditions have led industry participants to ask the following question more than anything else: What can I use to replace broker price opinions (BPOs)? Pro Teck says it has two products in production and available to clients today that meet the new interagency requirements.

Assurant Property Advantage, part of Assurant Specialty Property's lending solutions group, announced Thursday that it is expanding support for property preservation, restoration, and inspection services available to residential mortgage servicers and lenders. The company provides lenders and servicers with a single point of contact for abandoned property maintenance services via its nationwide network of contractors, service professionals, and inspectors.

Real Info, Inc., a national technology provider of real estate data and automated valuation models (AVMs), is offering AVMs with property condition reports designed to meet new regulatory appraisal and evaluation guidelines. Real Info contracted with Safeguard Properties, the nation's largest privately held mortgage field services company, to provide third party condition inspection reporting with full photo documentation.

Real estate software developer RES.NET has created a free, online Agent University. The new University is available in the AMP (Accelerated Management Platform) section of the RES.NET Web site and allows professional level members to sign in and take advantage of several classes designed to enhance their skills and advance their careers, as well as additional courses that are specific to the company's AMP system.

Mortgage Contracting Services (MCS) announced Tuesday the availability of REO Check, an inspection service to assist servicers with ongoing, independent on-site assessments of their foreclosed inventory throughout the REO lifecycle. Whether done on a monthly, biweekly, or weekly basis, MCS' REO Check provides information about each property's overall interior and exterior condition, noting such things as the presence of any hazardous conditions or posting of code violations.

Rowell Auctions, Inc. has announced the hiring of Douglas G. Dennison as national sales coordinator for the firm. Dennison has 20 years of auction experience and has specialized in large real estate government auctions throughout the country. He has served as auction project manager for the FDIC, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), U.S. Marshals Service, Small Business Administration (SBA), Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC), and U.S. bankruptcy auctions in more than 30 states.

Foreclosure auction sales in states along the West Coast have bounced back to levels not seen since robo-signing moratoriums went into effect last fall, the California-based tracking firm ForeclosureRadar reports. The company's coverage area includes the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. ForeclosureRadar says it recorded ""significant increases"" in activity on the courthouse steps in all five states during the month of January, with foreclosure sales jumping more than 50 percent in most areas.

Prommis Solutions, LLC, a national provider of default processing services headquartered in Atlanta, has appointed Ed Hill as SVP of trustee services. Hill will provide executive leadership for Prommis subsidiaries Cal-Western Reconveyance Corporation, Reliable Posting & Publication Company, and Interface, Inc.