Technology

Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, Inc., the integrated real estate brokerage franchise and relocation services business of Newark, New Jersey-based Prudential Financial, Inc., and Irvine, California-based RealtyTrac, an online real estate marketplace, recently announced an expansion of their business relationship.

In new policy guidelines released this week, Fannie Mae told servicers that they can no longer name MERS as the plaintiff in any foreclosure action, whether judicial or non-judicial, on a mortgage loan owned or securitized by the GSE. MERS is widely used by the industry to keep track of the servicing rights on home loans, and is often listed as the ""mortgagee of record."" But the system has become the centerpiece of a number of lawsuits, with foreclosed homeowners challenging the naming of the electronic system as mortgagee.

The real estate outlook for the remainder of 2010 is grim. According to a recent online survey of real estate executives conducted by Deloitte, 76 percent of executives expect commercial property values to continue to fall this year, and 73 percent predict asking rents will follow the same trend. When the market will recover still remains unknown, but it will undoubtedly take time. This was echoed by survey respondents, with 92 percent predicting that it will be at least two to four years - some say even longer - before we see a full market recovery.

ISGN Corporation has implemented a new user interface for its LenStar technology, a Web-based attorney and referral communication system for default management that the company says gives servicers access to lenders and attorneys servicing over 25 percent of the residential loans in the United States.

At a briefing of state housing counselors held this week at the HomeFree-USA office in Prince George's County, Maryland, Congressman Steny Hoyer and Raymond Skinner, Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development secretary, both expressed their support for HOPE LoanPort, making Maryland the first state in the nation to publicly endorse the program.

Credit Plus, Inc., a credit reporting agency based in Salisbury, Maryland, recently announced that its customers can obtain direct access to the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Technology Open to Approved Lenders (TOTAL) Scorecard though the company's innovative technology.

The First American Corporation (NYSE: FAF) is a FORTUNE 500 company, with total revenues of approximately $6 billion in 2009. As a leading provider of innovative software solutions to the mortgage industry, First American Technology Solutions provides unparalleled efficiencies and savings across client value chains by delivering tested, proven enterprise technologies on a quarterly release cycle with the highest quality and innovative functionality.

Altisource Portfolio Solutions announced Tuesday that First Associates, Inc. has implemented its REALRemit solution, an automated e-commerce invoicing and borrower payment portal, to manage accounts payable and borrower loan payments.

MRG Document Technologies (MRG), a Dallas-based provider of mortgage document preparation and compliance technology to lenders across the nation, recently announced that it has been named a RegulatorConnect certified partner by ComplianceEase, a San Francisco-based provider of intelligent business solutions to the financial services industry.

Countdown To Buy, a next generation online real estate marketplace, announced Tuesday that it successfully generated accepted offers on foreclosed properties in 30 days or less. The properties were located in Dallas and were listed on the company's Web site on March 5, 2010. And before the month's end, offers have already been accepted.