News

Mid-Atlantic Title Consultants, LLC and its National Title Consultants division recently announced that Debbie McDonald has joined the organization as assistant VP of processing. Teresa R. Williams, CEO of Mid-Atlantic Title Consultants, explained that McDonald's appointment is in support of the firms' growing client base in the processing of closing files as she will head the team overseeing the final work product.

Pending sales of existing homes - which in recent months have been nearly 40 percent comprised of REO and short sale properties - slipped much further than the market was expecting in April, signaling a feeble start to what typically would be the strongest home buying season of the year. The National Association of Realtors says following fairly commendable gains in February and March, its pending sales index dropped 11.6 percent in April. Economists had been expecting a decline, but significantly smaller at just 1 percent.

Potestivo & Associates, P.C., a legal provider in the real estate finance and credit industry, will represent the FDIC as outside counsel in Michigan and Illinois, according to a statement from the firm. The AV-rated firm, which includes more than 100 team members, handles all aspects of default servicing, including residential and commercial foreclosures, bankruptcies, landlord tenant, title resolution, home retention services, REO disposition, and litigation.

Local reports indicate investors have been snapping up more foreclosure and REO homes in recent months, and a new industry survey suggests they are poised to become an even bigger presence. According to Move, Inc., real estate investors will be more active in their local markets by a three-to-one margin compared to typical homebuyers over the next 24 months. The company says today's investor doesn't fit the common stereotype. Fifty percent plan to hold their properties for five-plus years, and three-fourths plan to combine cash and credit for a buy.

Fannie Mae has issued a notice to servicers detailing changes to how they should evaluate ""imminent default"" and how they determine the market value of properties for pre-foreclosure sales. The GSE is requiring servicers to apply the imminent default test now used only for HAMP modifications to all non-HAMP mods secured by owner-occupied properties. In addition, Fannie Mae is requiring servicers to use only approved providers for broker price opinions or appraisals on short sales and deeds-in-lieu.

The attorneys general for the states of Illinois and California are casting a wider net in their investigations of faulty foreclosure paperwork, issuing subpoenas against two Florida-based firms that provide mortgage servicing support to lenders and servicers across the country. The state counsels say they have received reports of robo-signing practices on the part of the two firms - LPS and Nationwide Title. Statements from the AGs indicate that the reach of both companies and their extensive client bases have put them on the radar.

Bank of America will leverage the federal government's Hardest Hit Fund (HHF) through participation in unemployment assistance programs in all 18 eligible states and the District of Columbia. The HHF targets states with sustained unemployment rates at or above the national average and falling property values. Collectively, state housing finance agencies have about 2,700 applications for unemployment assistance in process for BofA customers and have provided $2.8 million toward mortgage payments for the benefit of more than 700 customers.

Home prices in the U.S. continue to tumble as foreclosures claim a larger share of the market. Residential prices slipped 2.5 percent during the first quarter of this year when compared to the previous quarter, according to a national index calculated using sales prices from mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The index shows prices fell 5.5 percent between the first quarter of 2010 and the first quarter of 2011. It's the largest annual drop recorded since the second quarter of 2009.

Freddie Mac released the results of its latest mortgage rate survey on Thursday, which shows slower economic activity pushing fixed-rate mortgages slightly lower for the sixth consecutive week. The GSE says the 30-year mortgage is now averaging 4.60 percent and the 15-year rate is at 3.78 percent -- both new lows for 2011. Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) also dropped this week.

The Ohio Attorney General's office and Ohio Department of Commerce have announced an assurance of voluntary compliance (AVC) with Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC to resolve a 2009 lawsuit. The AVC will also provide relief to Ohio homeowners facing foreclosure. The three parties agreed to several mortgage servicing standards that will apply to all Ohio loans serviced by Carrington Mortgage Services, including providing borrowers who complete a modification application with a single point of contact.