With short sales gaining in popularity among lenders and homeowners alike, and the implementation date of the administration's Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program just around the corner, ""Lender Processing Services, Inc."":http://www.lpsvcs.com (LPS) is making moves to help servicers respond to short sale offers more efficiently.
[IMAGE]The Florida-based technology provider announced the launch of its professional short sale service Tuesday. Offered through LPS Asset Management Solutions, LPS says its new solution will allow lenders and servicers to process short sale offers faster and close more transactions.
In today's environment, servicers must be prepared to efficiently leverage alternatives like short sales. LPS explained that they must be able to manage an increase in short sale requests from borrowers and process the increased volume, while minimizing risk exposure and keeping operating complexity to a minimum.
[COLUMN_BREAK]""As the need for short sale management continues to increase, servicers must have an exceptionally efficient process in place for accuracy, timeliness and high-performance results,"" said Chad Neel, president of LPS Asset Management Solutions, LPS Field Services, and LPS Auction Solutions. ""We are ideally poised to help servicers streamline the short-sale process, enabling them to keep costs down and work with defaulted homeowners more effectively.""
LPS Asset Management Solutions already has an established network of asset managers who market and sell distressed and bank-owned properties, and the company says with this proven support group, servicers don't have to experiment with alternatives or create alliances that may not offer the same benefits.
LPS Asset Management Solutions is also drawing upon related LPS resources to bolster its new offering, including property preservation and code enforcement services, title and closing services, analytics, valuations, MLS data, and market trending data. The company will work directly with servicers to review title information; assess and resolve junior liens; evaluate the equity position for each transaction; perform occupancy checks; and provide property preservation services, if necessary.
Additionally, LPS can coordinate short sale offer reviews to provide guidance on whether the offers are in line with local market values and appropriate for the servicer's objectives. The company says it can also manage the entire closing process for short sale offers that are accepted, or support servicers with property auction and deed-in-lieu services to resolve distressed borrower situations.