News

Stewart Lender Services has developed a boutique REO asset management and disposition solution for community banks. The company says its approach can be sized for each individual lender and is designed to maximize the value of the bank's assets in the shortest amount of time. One key to achieving those results, Stewart says, is starting as early in the process as possible, in the pre-foreclosure stage. That combined with accurately valuing the asset and securing the title from the onset can shave weeks off the disposition cycle.

Varolii Corporation announced a new product to alleviate costs and streamline new processes servicers will have to adopt under the Single Point of Contact regulation requirements for all HAMP modifications. Varolii estimates its product will reduce servicer staffing requirements by 15 percent, while increasing borrower contact by 17 percent. The Varolii SPOC Mortgage Servicing Solution routes calls to the appropriate agents and incorporates borrowers' communication preferences.

DecisionReady Solutions, a California-based provider of default servicing compliance solutions, has announced the appointment of Matthew Lichtner to the position of executive vice president, director of national sales and client relations. Lichtner has over two decades of sales experience in the mortgage industry working for companies such as First American Corporation and Stewart Title Company.

An independent study conducted by Promontory Financial Group concludes that significantly more insured mortgages have survived the housing crisis than loans with ""piggyback"" second mortgages, which has been the most prevalent alternative to the use of mortgage insurance for the past decade. The study examined almost 5.7 million mortgages originated between 2003 and 2007. Compared with insured, low downpayment mortgages, loans with piggyback second mortgages were almost 21 percent more likely to go into default.

Despite a declining share of REO and short sales, and a seasonal increase in non-distressed sales, CoreLogic says home prices in June came in 6.8 percent below June 2010. Even with fewer distressed properties changing hands, short sale and REO transactions are weighing heavy on the overall market numbers. CoreLogic's data show that when distressed sales are excluded from the equation, the year-over-year price decline narrows to 1.1 percent. On a monthly basis, CoreLogic reports that home prices edged up 0.7 percent from May to June.

The Five Star Institute has announced a partnership with Fannie Mae to educate real estate agents on Fannie Mae's Short Sale Assistance Desk (SSAD). Fannie Mae's SSAD helps expedite the process by allowing real estate agents to reach out to the GSE directly for short sale approval of first-lien, Fannie Mae-backed loans. Agents can access the appropriate forms through multiple listing services. With 107,953 short sales in 2010, such transactions continue in significant numbers this year - 35,406 as of April, according to a federal report.

In its own private negotiations with state attorneys general and officials at HUD and the U.S. Justice Department, Bank of America is reportedly bringing principal reductions to the bargaining table. BofA and four other mortgage servicers have been in discussions with state and federal officials to settle investigations into foreclosure practices involving faulty paperwork and illegal affidavits, but talks have stalled. To move things along, BofA has put forth its own proposal for principal write-downs in exchange for liability protections.

Safeguard Properties, one of the largest privately held mortgage field services companies in the country, has announced four new appointments to its executive and management teams. Scott Wilson has been named to the newly created position of VP of property preservation. Amitha Rao now serves as director of enterprise information management. Dennis Hoye has taken on the role of corporate controller, and Adam Szczesniak has been appointed director of infrastructure services.

A Sacramento, California citizen has proposed an amendment to the California Constitution that would outlaw foreclosures. On claims that lending institutions have failed to provide a simple method of foreclosure prevention, David A. Benson's Foreclosure Modification Act would require lenders to provide principal reductions and interest rate reductions to help borrowers keep their homes. His proposal has already been cleared by the Secretary of State and now requires 807,615 signatures to make it onto the ballot.

The commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) market had been abuzz with positive momentum and murmurings of recovery for the better part of this year, but Trepp says that has all but vanished within the past few weeks. The research firm reported Tuesday that its latest monthly CMBS delinquency reading surpassed the previous record. In July, the delinquency rate for U.S. commercial real estate loans in CMBS shot up 51 basis points to 9.88 percent, as spreads widened and a highly publicized new issue was pulled from the market.