REO

The first week of January typically marks the seasonal low point for home sales, new listings, and closings, as weather and holiday celebrations keep buyers and sellers from the market, and this year is no different, according to Altos Research. The company says both home prices and inventory are down for the lion's share of the nation's regional markets. The analysts at Altos expect home prices to hit a new trough in 2011, falling another 5 to 10 percent over the next 12 months.

The Friday ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Court that invalidated two foreclosures by U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo has prompted an outpouring of responses from the industry, and many are wondering if the ruling will have far reaching effects on other foreclosure sales. The Supreme Court ruled the banks did not have the legal right to foreclose on homes in the state because they did not have proper documentation to prove they owned the mortgages at the time of foreclosure.

In an effort to reduce neighborhood blight and eliminate potential hot spots for crime, Mayor Dave Bing of Detroit has set a goal of demolishing 10,000 abandoned homes and residential structures in the city by the end of his term in December 2013. Since Detroit's Residential Demolition Program began in April 2010, about 1,850 vacant homes have been bulldozed. By comparison, in all of 2009, the city tore down just 860 empty homes.

When Philadelphia Sheriff John Green resigned on Friday, his replacement instituted some major changes immediately. Acting Sheriff Barbara Deeley announced a move to dismiss several top members of the staff and hired a new chief deputy. Deeley also announced that a 50-day moratorium on sheriff's sales of foreclosed homes would be instituted, and she terminated agreements with all title companies currently doing business with the sheriff's office.

Entrepreneur magazine ranked Showhomes 214th in its annual list of the top 500 franchise companies. The Nashville-based home staging company also ranked in the top 50 low-investment businesses, top 100 fastest growing franchise systems, and top 100 home-based businesses. Founded in 1986, Showhomes focuses on vacant properties. Franchisees recruit and train live-in home managers to stage and maintain the home while it is on the market.

The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled Friday that U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo did not have the legal right to foreclose on two homes in the state, invalidating the lenders' seizure of the properties and raising further questions about foreclosure documentation - this time related to the proper transfer of ownership on mortgages packaged as securities. Analysts warn that the decision could have far-reaching implications on loans that have already been liquidated, those in the process of foreclosure, and sales of bank-owned homes.

HUD recently deployed a new risk management tool developed by Walzak Consulting Inc. for use in its Management and Marketing III (M&M III) program for HUD field service manager and asset manager contractors who oversee the maintenance and sales of foreclosed FHA homes. The model measures and tracks the performance of HUD's REO vendors in meeting and following the department's contractual requirements and operational procedures.

KeyLink Asset Management has announced the release and implementation of a new asset management model that assigns dual agents to each asset throughout the pre-listing and marketing stages of the REO process. The model also contains a task-based commission structure that rewards listing agents for high performance and creates income opportunities for servicers in instances of low performance.

The delinquency rate for loans held in commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) rose again in December with the percentage of loans 30 or more days delinquent, in foreclosure, or REO climbing 27 basis points to 9.20 percent, according to data released this week by Trepp LLC. The tracking firm says it's the highest delinquency rate in history for U.S. commercial real estate loans in CMBS. The value of delinquent loans now exceeds $61.5 billion.

Clear Capital has released its home price report for the 2010 calendar year. The company's analysis shows that compared to where prices were at the end of 2009, nationally, residential properties lost 4.1 percent of their value over the last 12 months, with 70 percent of major markets reporting price declines for the year. The company is forecasting home prices nationally to fall by another 3.7 percent by the end of 2011, although the wild spikes experienced in 2010 will likely be replaced with more gradual price trends.