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Florida-based ""PREO"":http://www.preo.com operates an online marketplace aimed specifically at turning distressed properties into family homes. On Wednesday, the company announced the official launch of its ""new Web site"":http://www.preo.com, which PREO says can shrink the timeline for short sales to weeks instead of months.
[IMAGE]The concept behind the company's method to shorten short sales: get pre-approved pricing from lenders, detail the properties on a site with a national reach to buyers, pay a standard commission to all Realtors involved, then complete the sale with a streamlined paperwork process.
With this approach, PREO.com is closing short sales in as few as 30 days, the company explained. The site currently has approximately 3,500 listings driven by concentrations in Florida and California.
PREO says it is talking to lenders around the country to grow its listings and expand its reach, and is focusing much of its initial efforts in states where foreclosure rates
[COLUMN_BREAK]are highest, such as Florida, California, Nevada, Arizona, and Texas.
""PREO's system promises to be a major help to lenders who want to reduce their inventory of distressed properties,"" said Eric Friedman, PREO's president, who is a 20-year veteran of the mortgage industry and has held senior management positions with OneWest Bank (formerly IndyMac Bank, FSB), Fannie Mae, and Countrywide Home Loans.
Friedman has served on the Default Advisory Groups for both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, and was involved in the creation of HOPE NOW's Servicing Best Practices.
""We are very excited about the potential for our site to improve the flow of short sales, which will minimize lender and investor losses and help speed the housing recovery,"" Friedman added.
The company describes its site as a ""complete online marketplace"" for distressed residential properties. In addition to short sale offerings, PREO.com provides listings for REO and pre-foreclosure properties.
The company says its strategy is to bring together lenders, buyers, homeowners, and Realtors, to enable quick turnarounds on homes with clear and transparent processes and user-friendly interfaces.
PREO was founded by real estate, foreclosure, and bankruptcy attorney James E. Albertelli, Esq., who currently serves as the company's CEO. He says the idea for the default marketplace was born out of his desire to design a better way to increase return on investment (ROI) from the REO process, and at the same time, help defaulting homeowners find meaningful relief.
