Clear Capital has released its new Property Condition Inspection (PCI) tool. The new product provides a property's physical condition and characteristics, supplementing automated valuation models (AVMs) in accordance with new requirements from the Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines (IAG) issued by federal regulators.

With foreclosures expected to rise through 2012, Realis Real Estate Software recently offered tips for REO agents to avoid legal trouble when working with multiple foreclosure properties. The Denver-based workflow management software firm says foreclosure fraud is also increasing, which means potential damaging litigation. Realis says for agents, it all boils down to integrity, organization of all key data, and documentation.

Under a new Idaho state law, lenders must respond to requests for loan modification within 45 days and cannot proceed to a foreclosure sale until after responding to the request. House Bill 331, which takes effect September 1, also stipulates that lenders must meet in person or over the phone with the borrower if the borrower requests it. In addition, new documentation requirements and borrower contact parameters have been put in place.

Foreclosures in Florida dropped by 12 percent from March to April, according to ForeclosureDataOnline.com. Since the fourth quarter of last year, the state's foreclosure activity is down 47 percent. The site attributes this slowdown to the recent robo-signing foreclosure documentation problems exposed last fall, which resulted in temporary moratoriums and court delays where foreclosures require approval by a judge. However, March data suggest foreclosures will soon rise again as banks continue to work through their backlog of cases.

Mortgage Cadence recently announced that its Mortgage Cadence Reprise system can assist servicers in meeting proposed requirements to mortgage servicing procedures. Mortgage Cadence Reprise is a Web-based solution that provides servicers with automation technology, and the company says it will allow servicers to effectively respond to mortgage reform in the servicing industry while providing the customer service expected by state attorneys general and federal regulators.

Greg Rand, a 20-year real estate veteran and CEO of OwnAmerica, says now is the time to invest in real estate. Rand compares the current market to the years following the Great Depression when market conditions sparked a boom that sustained 65 years of appreciation in real estate. ""It is true that this is a once-in-a-generation crisis. It is also true that this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. It's time to focus on the other side of the coin,"" according to Rand.

Foreclosure activity is slowing in Massachusetts, according to the latest report by the Warren Group in Boston. Lenders filed 1,048 petitions to foreclose in the Bay State during March, a 60 percent decrease from March 2010. Foreclosure deeds also dropped, declining 60 percent from a year earlier. Likewise, auction announcements plummeted 62 percent.

US Debt Ventures, a Florida-based private equity firm, recently purchased a pool of non-performing mortgages valued at $500 million from a large financial institution. Consisting of approximately 7,000 first, second, and third liens from across the nation, the purchase is part of the company's strategy to acquire and work out large portfolios of distressed mortgages.

While mortgage defaults declined in California during the first quarter of 2011, foreclosures edged up. DataQuick reports that a total of 68,239 notices of default were recorded during the period, down nearly 16 percent from a year earlier. It was the lowest period of activity for default filings in the state since the second quarter of 2007. Homes lost to foreclosure tallied 43,052 during the first three months of this year, while short sales made up an estimated 18 percent of statewide resale activity.

On Monday, HUD launched a new campaign in Miami, Chicago, and Los Angeles called ""Know It. Avoid It. Report It."" The targeted operation aims to direct distressed homeowners to trusted resources and counselors for help to avoid foreclosure. It also solicits the support of homeowners in shutting down scammers who target the elderly, Hispanics, and African Americans.