REO

While delinquency rates in the United States continue to reach new highs, the pace of deterioration has slowed, Lender Processing Services (LPS) said Monday. Still, company's analysts caution that the nation's housing market remains far from a full recovery. According to LPS' latest Mortgage Monitor report, nearly 7.5 million loans are in some stage of delinquency or foreclosure, with an additional one million properties in REO or post-sale foreclosure.

Foreclosed homes taken back by lenders and distressed short sales accounted for nearly half of all residential home sales in California in 2009, according to a market report released this week by the California Association of Realtors. As one of the hardest-hit states by the housing downturn, the Golden State is littered with bank-owned properties and homes facing foreclosure, but the lower prices and increasing buyer appetite for these deals are helping to reduce some of California's distressed inventory.

Foreclosure filings issued to U.S. homeowners have fallen for the second straight month. According to new data released by RealtyTrac Thursday, default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions were reported on 308,524 properties in February. That's a 2 percent decrease from January, when foreclosure activity dropped by 10 percent. February's numbers are still 6 percent above the level reported one year earlier, but RealtyTrac says it's the smallest annual increase the company has tracked since January 2006.

Economists believe the nation's subprime mortgage meltdown and foreclosure crisis will continue to worsen unless innovative thinking reinvents the system. RebuildUS LLC says it's operating under precisely this premise by bypassing the banks and auctions to move Americans back into affordable homeownership through its newly-launched online foreclosure marketplace.

Equator, a Los Angeles-based software provider for the default servicing industry, announced Monday the launch of its new Professional REO solution. The company explained that PRO REO encompasses all the power and best practices of Equator's enterprise REO application in an affordable, quick and easy to adopt solution for the middle market.

Desiree Patno Enterprises, Inc., a women-owned REO brokerage based out of Irvine, California, has announced the integration of a new department designed to provide assistance to homeowners in default at no cost. The company is now offering free information regarding loan modifications and short sales both in-office and online.

Mortgage insurance claims filed by servicers on defaulted loans are showing signs of tapering off, according to data released by the risk analysis and due diligence firm Clayton Holdings. Clayton's analysts attribute the decline to the increase in servicers' foreclosure prevention initiatives and fewer loans moving into REO status. They also noted that mortgage insurance providers are spending more time reviewing individual claims and evaluating servicers' modification decisions for continued insurance coverage.

Saxon Mortgage Services, Inc., based in Irving, Texas, announced Wednesday that it has named Stephen Staid as EVP of customer relationship management. His appointment comes as Saxon repositions itself into the residential subservicing space, specializing in distressed asset servicing.

New data released by Clear Capital Thursday shows that home prices nationally are up 5.0 percent compared to February 2009. It's the second straight month that year-over-year price variations have been in positive territory. Clear Capital also reported that REO saturation increased in February, but that was expected with the typical winter slowdown in sales. Regarding the threat of a shadow inventory, the company suspects this inflow will arrive with a stronger springtime and summer buying season, helping to ease the shock to the marketplace.

To better market its foreclosure listings, Highlands Ranch, Colorado-based Specialized Asset Management LLC (SAM), a national provider of asset marketing and disposition services to mortgage lenders, servicers, and investors, recently partnered with RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace headquartered in Irvine, California.