REO

California Attorney General Kamala Harris is asking the court to force Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to turn over information about their servicing, foreclosure, property leasing, and mortgage securitization activities in the state. Harris issued subpoenas to each of the GSEs last month, outlining 51 questions the attorney general wanted answered. Fannie and Freddie's regulator, however, has reportedly instructed the companies not to respond to the state's request.

RES.NET, an infrastructure of diverse real estate professionals and supporting software applications, has recently launched a new tool embedded within all RES.NET portals called Connect. Connect enables all parties involved in the sale of a property to connect to each other and track the progress of their real estate transaction, regardless of sale type. This new tool enables the real estate industry to update their communications, and create a similar environment to that which is found in social media sites, the company explained.

The number of distressed properties not currently listed on multiple listing services stood at 1.6 million as of October 2011, according to CoreLogic. This shadow inventory is approximately half of the industry's visible inventory, the company says, meaning for every two homes available for sale, there is one home in the ""shadows."" CoreLogic's latest shadow inventory assessment represents a supply of five months and is down from October 2010, when it stood at 1.9 million units, or 7-months' supply.

Mortgage Contracting Services LLC (MCS), a nationwide provider of property preservation, inspections, and REO property maintenance to the financial services industry, has announced the promotions of Judy Mroczka to SVP of finance and Laura Bast Nold to VP of human resources. Both joined MCS in 2007, Mroczka as VP of finance and Nold as a senior human resources manager.

Existing-home sales rose again last month, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). That assessment, however, is coming off of lower sales numbers than previously thought, reflecting revisions to NAR's data going back to 2007. The trade group has adjusted sales and inventory figures for the last four years downward by 14.3 percent. NAR's November report shows sales of previously owned homes up 4.0 percent to an annual rate of 4.42 million from 4.25 million in October, and 12.2 percent above the 3.94 million-unit pace a year earlier.

Homebuyer demand appears to be intensifying, especially among lower-priced REO properties, according to an industry study released Tuesday. Time-on-market for move-in ready REO was just 10.1 weeks in November, the lowest in 15 months, according to the HousingPulse survey. Time-on-market for damaged REO was even lower at 9.0 weeks, also the lowest in 15 months. The HousingPulse survey polls approximately 2,500 real estate agents nationwide each month to assess market trends surrounding homes sales.

StreetLinks Lender Solutions has announced the launch of StreetLinks LVR, a new liquidation valuation report developed for mortgage servicers and asset management firms which is compliant with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). LVRs are performed by StreetLinks' nationwide panel of licensed appraisers, taking into account property condition, comparables, and local market trends. The company says its approach will provide an objective analysis of a distressed property's liquidation price within a 90-day marketing window.

BestAssets has named Melvin Siemer to the position of EVP and director of asset management services, responsible for the national strategic growth of the company's operations and business development. Siemer leads a team of REO and default servicing professionals that service national, regional, and community banks, as well as credit unions and mortgage servicers. He also works closely with a national network of real estate brokers, subcontractors, appraisers, and property inspectors.

Lender Processing Services (LPS) has released new data detailing mortgage performance at November month-end. The most troubling statistic shows a nearly 3 percent month-over-month increase in the number of loans 30 or more days past due but not yet in foreclosure. LPS says 8.15 percent of the nation's mortgages fell into this category as of the end of November. That's up from 7.93 percent at the end of October and is the first time in four months the company has reported a rise in the national delinquency rate.

November marked the fourth straight month that Fitch Ratings has recorded a decline in the delinquency rate for loans held in U.S. commercial-backed mortgage securities (CMBS). CMBS late-pays fell by 15 basis points to 8.41 percent, as new delinquencies totaling $1.8 billion were offset by $2.2 billion of resolutions. Behind the positive numbers, though, Fitch says the performance of CMBS collateralized by office properties remain an area of concern, with more than half of all new delinquencies stemming from office loans.