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Author Archives: Esther Cho

Pango Group Hires EVP of Sales

Pango Group hired Joe Curtis as EVP of sales to join the family of escrow and financial service companies. In his new role, Curtis is responsible for overseeing sales operations with the end goal of building out a team founded on consultative and value-based selling.

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Zillow: Buying Beats Renting in 64% of Metros After 3 Years

According to Zillow, in 64 percent of U.S. metros, buying is more affordable than renting if homebuyers plan to stay in their home for at least three years. In several large metros, it would only take around two years before a buyer reached what Zillow called the ""breakeven horizon,"" or the time it takes for buying to become more financially advantageous than renting. Out of the 30 largest metro areas, Zillow found Miami and Detroit had the shortest breakeven timeline of just two years in the first quarter. In New York, buyers would need to stay in their homes for 5.2 years before reaching the breakeven horizon.

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RealtyTrac: Building Permits Rise as Foreclosure Starts Decline

On a national level, the relationship between building permits and foreclosure starts resembled that of a seesaw in the first quarter, with an equal but opposite rise and fall, but in some markets, both permits and foreclosures are on the rise, according to a report from RealtyTrac. After analyzing data from HUD, the online foreclosure marketplace found single-family building permits increased 27 percent year-over-year in the first quarter to the highest level in five years, while foreclosure starts fell 27 percent during the same time period to the lowest level since the second quarter of 2006.

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Loan Mods, Short Sales Outpace Foreclosure Sales 2-to-1 in Q1

From January through March, servicers implemented 244,933 loan modifications, according to HOPE NOW. At the same time, 83,394 borrowers avoided foreclosure through the short sale process. This brings the combined total for loan modifications and short sales to 328,327 for the first quarter. Meanwhile, HOPE NOW data showed foreclosure sales fell 14 percent to 161,641. Although foreclosure sales were down, foreclosure starts increased 30 percent in the first quarter to about 472,000.

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Home Affordability Index Slips in Q1, but Remains Strong

As interest rates stay low, housing affordability across the country remained strong in the first quarter but showed signs of weakening, according to data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). According to the index, 73.7 percent of new and existing-homes sold in the first quarter of this year were affordable to families earning the U.S. median income of $64,400. In the fourth quarter of last year, 74.9 percent of homes were considered to be affordable to median-income earners.

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New LPS Tool Speeds Up Workout Process for Fannie Mae Loans

Lender Processing Services, Inc. introduced the web-based Workout Interaction Tool (WIT), which provides data from its MSP servicing system to and from Fannie Mae’s Servicing Management Default Underwriter (SMDU) platform. LPS' WIT provides mortgage servicers with access to Fannie Mae's SMDU to provide consistent, real-time decisions on loan modifications and other workout solutions for struggling homeowners.

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Two Plead Guilty for Roles in Foreclosure Rescue Scam

Two men who allegedly operated online foreclosure rescue businesses pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges, the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) announced in a statement. According to the statement, Mark S. Farhood of San Diego and Jason S. Sant of Lecanto, Florida co-owned Home Advocate Trustees, which also went by several other names. Farhood and Sant claimed their businesses purchased distressed real estate to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

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U.S. Households Barely Out of Financial Distress in Q1

U.S. households experienced higher levels of financial distress in the first quarter as they faced budget constraints and a drop in the savings rate, according to the CredAbility Consumer Distress Index. With a score below 70 indicating a state of financial distress, households barely stayed out of distress with a score of 70.7 out of 100 in the first quarter of this year, down from 71.77 in the previous quarter, CredAbility reported.

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Ally Reaches Claims Settlement with ResCap and Creditors

Ally Financial Inc. announced an agreement that settles any existing and potential claims from Residential Capital--its bankrupt mortgage subsidiary--and ResCap creditors, according to an announcement Tuesday. The plan ""fully releases Ally from any claim,"" including representation and warranty claims, that could be brought on by ResCap and its third parties, but makes an exception for securities claims by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a release stated.

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