REO

Banks and other financial institutions have agreed to many multimillion and even multibillion dollar settlements following the financial crisis for their mortgage practices. This week, however, HUD ruled in favor of U.S. Bank in a complaint that alleged racial discrimination in REO property maintenance.

The combined share of REO property sales and short sales is less than a third of what it was at its peak nearly seven years ago.

The decrease in the share of all-cash transactions has been slow but steady. What factors are behind the decline?

When distressed properties account for a large share of all residential home sales, it tends to pull down the prices of non-distressed homes, since foreclosed and REO properties typically sell at a discount to non-distressed homes. Data released by CoreLogic shows that as of late, however, the still-high distressed sales share is not causing non-distressed prices to fall.

The share of all-cash sales continues to decline, and the share of homes purchased by institutional investors—who account for the largest percentage of all-cash sales—has dropped right along with it.

At their peak in January 2011, cash sales accounted for nearly half of all residential home sales in the United States (46.5 percent). Since then, that percentage has steadily declined; in August 2015, it was reported at 31.7 percent, less than one-third of all home sales—a decline of more than 3 percentage points from August 2014, when it was 34.9 percent.

Aspen Grove Solutions (AGS), a provider of property centric technology solutions to the financial and mortgage services industry, has announced that the company is adding Brookstone Management, LLC to their list of clients. A national repair contractor headquartered in New ...

The FHFA said that beginning December 1, 2015, local community organizations will be able to review and purchase foreclosed properties owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the newly added 18 metro areas before they hit the public market.

The distressed sales share, which includes sales of REO properties and short sales, was reported to be 9.3 percent for August 2015, down 2.3 percentage points from August 2014. August’s distressed sales share of 9.3 percent is the lowest since September 2007 and is less than a third off from its peak in January 2009, when it made up nearly a third of total residential home sales (32.4 percent).

LRES, a company that specializes in national REO and appraisal management while offering property valuations, asset management, HOA and technology solutions for the mortgage industry, recently made two new hires.