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Clinton’s Path to Industry’s Five Star Conference Runs Through Charlotte

Former President Bill Clinton will stop off at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Charlotte, North Carolina, before making his way to the Five Star Conference and Expo in Dallas, Texas, where he is scheduled to address the mortgage industry's largest gathering of default servicing professionals. Media outlets were abuzz Monday with news that Clinton is slated to give the official nomination speech naming President Barack Obama as his party's presidential candidate on Wednesday, September 5, just two days before his speech at the 2012 Five Star Conference.

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Study Captures Changing Attitudes Toward Strategic Default in Nevada

In hard-hit state Nevada, more than 60 percent of homeowners are underwater, and about one in 16 properties received a foreclosure notice in 2011, according to a 2012 Face of Foreclosure study released by the Nevada Association of REALTORS (NVAR). With negative equity and foreclosures seeming so commonplace in the state, the stigma of strategic default appears to be fading. ""This year's report shows it's more socially acceptable to strategically default on your mortgage,"" said NVAR President Blane Johnson. When surveyed on the topic, 51 percent of those who were foreclosed on said there is nothing wrong with strategic default as a financial decision while 36 percent said homeowners should not choose to strategically default.

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Lack of Inventory Blamed for June’s Dip in Pending Home Sales

In another sign the housing sector may be languishing again —the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) dipped 1.4 percent in June to 99.3 from a downwardly revised 100.7 in May, the National Association of Realtors reported Thursday. Economists had expected a 0.9 percent increase to 101.6. Prior to the recent drops, the PHSI had been rising steadily until April. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, blamed a lack of inventory for the drop in the index.

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Ten Best Metros to Buy Foreclosures: RealtyTrac

With foreclosure starts up in the second quarter of 2012, RealtyTrac listed the top 10 metros to buy or invest in foreclosures for the remainder of 2012. Overall, 132 out of 212 metropolitan areas with a population of 200,000 or more posted increases in foreclosure starts from the previous quarter, according to RealtyTrac. The bump in starts marks a 60 percent gain and means more foreclosure inventory for those markets. RealtyTrac's list includes metros where the average foreclosure sales price is increasing on an annual basis, average foreclosure sale discounts are still 15 percent or higher, and the unsold inventory of REOs represents a supply of 20 months or fewer.

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Barclays: Distressed Areas Leading Recovery

Data in Barclays' newest Securitization Products Weekly suggests that distressed markets are outperforming others in home appreciation and paving the way for a broad-based housing recovery. Barclays waved off concerns about shadow inventory, saying it is more of a symptom than a cause of depreciation and speculated that the share of distressed homes is a more significant factor keeping home prices down. An increased REO stock should actually be taken as a positive sign for non-distressed prices, Barclays said.

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Short Sale Bill Addresses Slow Approval from 2nd Lien Holders

Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Stockton) recently introduced a bill to speed up the short sale process by requiring subordinate mortgage lien holders to make a decision on a short sale within 45 days. McNerney's bill proposes that if the lender does not make a decision within the given time period, the short sale will be approved on the 46th day. The bill, titled Fast Help For Homeowners (FHFH) Act, received strong support from the ""National Association of Realtors.

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Q&A with RealtyTrac VP Daren Blomquist on Short Sales

DS News recently caught up with RealtyTrac VP Daren Blomquist to talk to him about short sales. Although data shows the alternative to foreclosure is becoming more widely used, anecdotal evidence points to frustration and difficulty when pursuing a short sale. So, we decided to have a conversation with Daren about the obstacles that get in the way of short sales, what can be done, and what the upcoming trends might be.

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Median Price for Existing Home at Highest Level Since 2008

The median price of an existing single family home rose in June to the highest level since almost four years, the fifth straight month-month gain, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Thursday.. The median price was up 7.9 percent from June 2011. Existing home sales dropped to 4.37 million in June to the lowest level since last October, the NAR said. It was the fourth drop in the last five months. Economists had expected the sales pace to increase to 4.65 million from 4.62 million in May.

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Los Angeles Sues U.S. Bank Over Deteriorating Foreclosures, Evictions

Los Angeles' city attorney, Carmen A. Trutanich, announced his office filed a lawsuit against US Bank over allegations that the bank allows its foreclosures to deteriorate into slum conditions and executes illegal evictions, according to a release Tuesday. The complaint cites more than 170 properties as examples of US Bank's illegal conduct. US Bank denied its role in the complaints, stating, ""We are extremely disappointed that the City Attorney's office has chosen to file this lawsuit. The city attorney has chosen the wrong party - we are not the owners of the properties, nor are we responsible for the servicing of the properties.""

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