Default service providers are seeing a boost in business due to increased short sales and foreclosures. Offerings promise to help value distressed properties and resolve real-estate-owned assets. Technology is a big part of today’s default services industry.
Rekon Technologies last month announced the use of its lien release software has seen a steady climb. An increase in short sales was cited for the rise. The Pasadena, Calif.-based tech company said its software provides current status on requirements, fees and deadlines for preparing lien release documents in all recording districts nationwide. In addition, it is designed to create lien release for short sales that are more accurate than a manual process and helps avoid costly lien release backlogs.
Equator, a default services technology provider, launched a servicer-specific training program. Mortgage servicers can customize the online software-based training to follow their unique requirements for REO sale processes and standards. Manuals, videos and task guidelines are included in the program. In addition, servicers can amend and update course materials when necessary, the company said in its August announcement.
On the heels of its training program, Equator brought to market EQforeclosure, a servicer-to-attorney foreclosure and bankruptcy solution. The Los Angeles, Calif.-based company said it eliminates the need for third party intervention and offers a transparent platform for managing the entire foreclosure process.
In late October, Equator said nearly half of all U.S. distressed properties had been processed through its technology; specifically 48 percent of short sales and 35 percent of REO transactions.
Interthinx and Decision Ready Solutions last October announced their alliance to offer quality control and forensic loan review programs to the servicing industry. The programs will offer more stringent default servicing and foreclosure process governance, in response to weaknesses cited by federal regulators in the Interagency Review of Foreclosure Policies and Practices, the multi-state settlement, and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enforcements.
The QC programs offered in conjunction with Irvine, Calif.-based Decision Ready, allow “servicers to review operational activity and objectively score the process on accuracy and policy conformance,” a statement from Kevin Coop, then-president of Agoura Hills, Calif.-based Interthinx, said.
Coop has since left Interthinx to become executive vice president of enterprise strategy at Service Link, a division of Fidelity National Financial.
A new REO solution announced in late October by Lender Processing Services reportedly supports the management and disposition of REO assets for servicers. LPS said the web-enabled REO Workspace application offers greater transparency and combines customized functionality and data for an end-to-end solution. The Jacksonville, Fla.-based company noted that the application was designed to address the unique needs of servicers who want to manage REO activities in house.
Rental Broker Price Opinion debuted at the MBA Annual Convention, according to an Oct. 19 news release from PCV Murcor. The Pomona, Calif.-based firm said the tiered offering includes a broker price opinion, automated rent estimate and the option to receive a reconciled broker opinion of the rental estimate. It also includes verified property condition information and valuable local sales and rental market knowledge from a licensed broker, PCV said.
Another announcement emerging from the MBA event was a web-based skip trace application from Foothill Ranch, Calif.-based Quandis. The technology service provider said the solution can be used to quickly locate, contact and engage with borrowers who are in financial distress or have defaulted. The skip trace solution integrates search services and also offers interview-style call scripting, workflow management and other reporting tools.
In response to customers who said they preferred licensed real estate professionals to conduct property condition reports rather than credentialed inspectors, CoreLogic released OnSite Plus. The offering is designed to be used with an automated valuation model to generate an evaluation adhering to the interagency appraisal and evaluation guidelines. The Santa Ana, Calif.-based company said in an August press release that the program had been adopted by over 50 lenders.
In October, CoreLogic followed the announcement of OnSite Plus with the launch of a new product, BPO Check. It is designed to reduce BPO reviews, improve accuracy and manage short sale fraud. Using the CoreLogic automated valuation model, property information database, MLS listings, and other data — BPO Check creates a single score that identifies high-risk BPOs.
A partnership announced between Tucson, Ariz.-based Conix Inc. and Denver, Colo.-based EquityLock Solutions will provide home price protection guarantees for REO properties. Conix, an investor, and EquityLock, an asset managing company, said in an August announcement that EquityLock Protection contracts were being offered with the sale of select REO properties. The contract protects the value of the customer’s home from future local market declines for up to 15 years, Conix said in an August release.
Hope LoanPort told Mortgage Daily it rolled out a new, national consumer-direct web portal, www.HomeownerConnect.org, that allows borrowers to self-engage and complete a workout application online. Washington, D.C.-based Hope LoanPort said the application process is stored electronically online for ease of use, and the program offers distressed borrowers a multitude of resources.
Notary compliance services have been incorporated into electronic notarizations, a July news release from World Wide Notary. The Texas corporation said the DigaSign NCS features enable mortgage companies to track and prove compliance with mandates established with the Mortgage Settlement regulations. This would also reduce the possibility of penalties and protect against robo-signings, the company said.
Rapid growth at Wingspan Portfolio Advisors LLC is attributed to its ability to adapt to changing client needs, according to the Dallas-based distressed-loan servicer. Also behind growth at the Mortgage Daily advertiser is a wide range of innovative and technological strategic services that it provides.
