REO

The number of price-reduced homes on the market in December 2010 fell by 7.7 percent from the previous month, according to a report surveying 26 major U.S. markets issued by ZipRealty. Despite the month-to-month decline, the company says the number of homes with a reduced asking price remained high compared to a year earlier, rising 23.4 percent from December 2009. The report also found that in the markets surveyed, the median list price in December was down 3.9 percent from November.

Recent data from Barclays Capital examines the ramifications of the fourth quarter foreclosure debacles on REO roll rates. Data released Friday shows the foreclosure-to-REO rate dropped 57 percent in judicial states the last few months of 2010, and dropped 42 percent in the non-judicial states. In New York, the roll rate ground to a near stop, dropping a whopping 91 percent in December when compared to the rate from January to October 2010.

Summit Valuations, LLC recently announced that the company's Market Intelligence Tool, a critical component to its quality control process, now accompanies each broker price opinion (BPO) provided to Summit clients. The Market Intelligence Tool taps into the unified data warehouse to query similar listings and sales transactions surrounding each subject property. It also integrates with Google maps to provide interactive insight into the subject property and its immediate neighborhood market conditions.

The market's been flooded with REOs, and banks are struggling to get these properties off their books and back into the hands of responsible homeowners. According to Field Asset Services, the answer to moving these properties faster is simple - with some pretty standard repairs, such as fresh paint and updated appliances, the company's independent market study found that lenders can cut more than two-thirds off the length of the sales cycle.

FEI, a national provider of posting, publication, auction management, property preservation, and asset management services based in Washington, recently acquired RSVP, a national provider of similar services headquartered in California. Together, FEI and RSVP will offer foreclosure services including posting, service of process, and publication management that controls the production and placement of legal notices in 2,300 publications from coast to coast.

Cyprexx Services LLC has a new online look. The Florida-based default and REO field services firm has just launched a completely redesigned Web site and Web portal. The new layout offers improved navigation features and provides both clients and vendors an easier-to-read site. In addition to offering more information about new releases and updates to the company's technology platform, the new login panel provides users with special enhancements that include an improved property search page to return results faster.

Lenders repossessed 1,050,500 homes last year, according to the 2010 end-of-year foreclosure report from RealtyTrac. The annual figure marks a record-high number of new bank-owned properties tracked by the company. The 2010 tally is up 14 percent from the previous year, when banks seized 918,376 homes. While the number of homes taken back by lenders jumped by more than 130,000 from 2009 to 2010, RealtyTrac's data show the number of default filings declined by 20 percent over the same period.

LRES Corporation, a provider of valuations and asset management for the mortgage, banking, and real estate industries, now uses TrackPoint REO technology to facilitate real estate-owned transactions on behalf of its clients. Created by DepotPoint, Inc., TrackPoint is a workflow and tracking system and the foundation of DepotPoint's default servicing applications, including TrackPoint Loss Mitigation and TrackPoint REO.

CoreLogic released its November home price index Tuesday, which shows that home prices in the United States declined for the fourth month in a row. The company reported that national home prices, including distressed sales, fell by 5.07 percent in November 2010 when compared to November 2009. The rate of decline increased significantly in November, and CoreLogic says it's indicative of the uphill battle to achieve a housing recovery.

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.