Overland Park, Kansas-based South & Associates, P.C. has hired a new associate attorney, Randall J. Wharton. Wharton joins the firm’s Wichita, Kansas office and will practice in the foreclosure and bankruptcy departments.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, the real estate market just got a lot uglier! And it will be up to American voters to decide who will walk away with the honor of the Ugliest House of The Year.

The LOGS Network of attorneys, trustees, and title and collection personnel has announced a strategic legal and business relationship with mortgage banking law firm Weiner Brodsky Sidman Kider PC.

NeighborWorks America announced yesterday that more than 100 million homeowners have learned where to go for help if they’re experiencing mortgage trouble that might lead to foreclosure through a national public service advertising campaign led by the nonprofit organization, in partnership with the Ad Council.

Foreclosure filings in Wisconsin continued at record paces during the month of September, according to the latest figures released from ForeclosuresWI.com. September foreclosure filings totaled 2,021, bringing the year-to-date filings in the state to 18,160.

The federal Justice Department has opened 151 criminal mortgage fraud cases since October 2007, according to a study by the records clearinghouse organization at Syracuse University. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is handling about half of the cases.

The demand for broker price opinions (BPOs) is on the rise, as lenders and default managers trying to avoid foreclosures try to negotiate more short sales or workout deals with borrowers. Not only do BPOs provide servicers with comparable sales to value a house, but often they give them the probability of selling a home under current market conditions.

At the California Realtor Expo this week, Foreclosure Trackers Inc. (FTI) announced the launch of its Real Estate Agent Network. Now more than ever, Realtors are trying to generate viable leads that will result in sales, explained Robert Lee, CEO of Foreclosure Trackers.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) announced today that it has assembled a task force of MBA members to examine policy options and issue recommendations for the future of the secondary mortgage market.

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) now only accepts new applications from state-certified appraisers, and lenders underwriting FHA loans may only use appraisals from appraisers on the FHA roster.