|
News By Edition
|
Valuation Review Edition
June 9, 2014
|
|
Get ready for the housing recovery (for real this time)
Posted Date: Monday, June 9, 2014
There are different ways to skin a cat when it comes to earning a living as an appraiser other than standard residential mortgage lending assignments.
A number of appraisers look to market themselves for use in litigation, divorce, tax and estate work. Some have turned their attention to the commercial market.
But the fact is that as the residential market goes, so goes the workload for the majority of appraisers.
It doesn’t take long in talking with appraisal professionals to realize that these aren’t exactly the “salad days” of the profession. All it takes is asking, “How’s business?” a few times to find that out.
The recession era — and the slow economic years that continue to this day because of it — is starting to feel like the Hundred Years’ War for most people working in settlement services.
To paraphrase the Talking Heads, how did we get here?
Why is the housing market still slow? And more importantly, when will it pick up?
|
|
|
Obama nominates rising star as new head of Housing and Urban Development
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
President Obama announced the nomination of San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro as the next secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on May 23. The current secretary, Shaun Donovan, is slated to be appointed the new director of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The shift at the top of HUD would mark the first change of leadership since the troughs of the recession were suffocating the housing market.
Obama praised Donovan’s efforts to stabilize the housing market during his tenure as secretary, which began during the heart of the economic downturn in 2009.
“Few had a tougher job than Shaun Donovan,” Obama said. “The housing bubble that burst triggered the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes — and the irresponsibility of a few bad actors badly hurt millions of responsible, hardworking Americans. Home values had fallen 20 percent from the year before. New housing starts had fallen nearly 80 percent from their peak. Hundreds of thousands of construction workers were out of a job. And a record number of people were behind on their mortgages.
|
|
|
Appraiser board proposes revisions to Real Property Appraiser Qualification Criteria
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
The Appraisal Foundation’s Appraiser Qualifications Board (AQB) announced proposed revisions to the 2015 Real Property Appraiser Qualification Criteria (Criteria) on May 22.
The proposed changes pertain to required background checks for new applicants for a real property appraiser credential. The initial AQB requirements adopted in December 2011 were derived verbatim from the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing (S.A.F.E.) Act of 2008.
However, many found the language in the S.A.F.E. Act to be unsuitable in its entirety.
The AQB received feedback that suggested changes be made in the Criteria’s language to place the onus of responsibility for the background checks on the state appraiser regulatory agencies rather than the applicants themselves. The AQB issued a First Exposure Draft to propose changes in language in response to this feedback.
|
|
|
Ellie Mae names new executive
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
Ellie Mae, a provider of on-demand software solutions and services for the residential mortgage industry, announced May 27 that a former executive of the Mortgage Bankers Association and long-time leader of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization, has joined the company as vice president of e-strategies. Keep reading to see the company’s new addition.
|
|
|
Are energy-efficient mortgages the thing of the future?
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Bill Ritter, the former governor of Colorado and current director of the Center for the New Energy Economy at Colorado State University, wrote a piece in The Wall Street Journal May 22 advocating the merits of energy-efficient mortgages (EEMs) for U.S. homeowners. The more efficient mortgage option is just part of Ritter’s larger goal to cut energy consumption in half by 2030.
EEMs are mortgages that credit a home’s energy efficiency into the mortgage itself. The energy savings are figured into the mortgage in a way that allows borrowers to qualify for higher-cost loans since, with conventional EEMs, lenders can increase the borrower’s income by the same dollar amount as the property’s estimated energy savings.
Besides through conventional lenders, EEMs are also available through federal agencies such as the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac purchase EEMs on the secondary market.
|
|
|
Compliance issues cited as executives’ top concern
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
Compliance and increasing cost pressures headed the list of concerns at a recent gathering of banking and financial service industry executives hosted by SLK Global, a business solutions provider for the U.S. banking, mortgage, title and financial services industries. Keep reading to see the biggest concerns facing industry leaders today.
|
|
|
HUD issues $40 million in grants to assist borrowers
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced May 22 that it has awarded more than $40 million in grants to hundreds of national, regional and local organizations to help families and individuals with their housing needs and to prevent future foreclosures. HUD’s housing counseling grants and the additional funding they help to leverage, will assist more than 1.5 million households find housing, make more informed housing choices or keep their current homes. Keep reading to learn about who will benefit from the grants.
|
|
|
VA looks to expand pool of appraisers
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) said that the agency is determined to bolster its services dedicated to helping current and former military members attain homeownership. Representatives from the VA Home Loan Guaranty program said that, as part of the VA’s initiative, the VA is focused on increasing its pool of appraisers to expedite the home-buying process, the National Association of Realtors reported.
The comments were made May 15 at the Realtor Party Convention & Trade Expo in Washington, D.C.
|
|
|
Major bank announces intention to be bigger player in residential market
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Jane Frasier, the head of U.S. consumer and commercial banking for Citigroup, said that the company is looking to play a bigger role in the U.S. residential mortgage market.
Speaking at the MBA National Secondary Market Conference & Expo in New York on May 21, Frasier stated the company’s intention is to grow its footprint by buying more home loans from other firms.
The move is a strategy Citigroup will employ to regain its place in the market: It has dropped from being the fourth largest mortgage originator in 2007 to the sixth largest today, Bloomberg reported.
|
|
|
National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals pushes for more inclusive housing reform
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals has issued a letter to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs pushing for housing finance reform that does a better job aiding both disadvantaged and diverse homebuyers. In the letter to the Senate Committee, NAHREP President Jason Madiedo said that while current proposed legislation to reform the housing finance system may be on the right track, it does not go far enough to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse home-buying market. Keep reading to see what the letter said the Senate needs to address.
|
|
|
Homeowners look to remodeling to boost home value
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Houzz, an online provider of home remodeling and design information, reported that the majority of homeowners remodeling their residences are doing so to increase the property’s resale value. The findings were part of the third annual Houzz & Home survey, which was compiled from the responses of more than 135,000 U.S. respondents concerning their attitudes on the housing market. Keep reading to see how homeowners’ attitudes and preferences are affecting the housing market.
|
|
|
Mortgage services provider enhances document management platform
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
A domestic-based mortgage services provider announced May 20 that its document management unit has added a new cloud-based servicing transfer solution as part of its proprietary platform. The solution is designed to review loan files, recognize critical borrower workout documents and create additional data and fields needed to accurately service transferred loans. Keep reading to see the details on the new product offering.
|
|
|
Mortgage servicer sues 12 lenders over bad loans
Posted Date: Monday, May 19, 2014
Residential Capital LLC (ResCap) filed lawsuits against Bank of America and 11 other mortgage lenders who ResCap claims sold the mortgage servicer bad loans that resulted in the company going bankrupt two years ago.
The real estate finance company filed 12 similar lawsuits with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan on May 13 against Bank of America, Summit Financial, Synovus Mortgage Corp., Primary Capital Advisors, Cadence Bank, Mortgage Investors Group, Honor Bank, First Mariner Bank, CMG Mortgage, Citizens First Wholesale Mortgage, RBC Mortgage Co. and PHH Mortgage Corp.
The lawsuits are based on ResCap’s claim that the lenders failed to properly collect and assess borrowers’ personal and financial information to adequately confirm loan recipients’ ability to repay the loans issued to them.
|
|
|
Connecticut appraiser law could shift appraiser requirements
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
A bill seeking to make changes to Connecticut’s real estate appraiser and appraisal management company law awaits the signature of Gov. Dannel Malloy.
Senate Bill 205, which was introduced Feb. 19, was sent to the governor May 14. The bill aims to implement the recommendations of the Department of Consumer Protection’s (DCP) Trade Practices Real Estate Unit, as a result of a federal audit conducted by the Appraisal Subcommittee of the federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, and eliminate outdated references to limited appraisers and licensed appraisers. The bill eliminates obsolete references to the limited appraiser and appraiser licenses and makes conforming changes based on their elimination. The DCP stopped issuing or renewing these licenses in 2006 and 2003, respectively.
|
|
|
Mobile apps help free up appraisers
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
When people talk about the versatility that mobile technology can provide, what they are mostly talking about is the functionality that software applications, or apps, can deliver to the user.
Smartphones and tablets have some useful out-of-the-box tools, but for all intents and purposes, the real “game-changing” tools for appraisers are reduced to what these downloadable software apps can offer.
Just a couple short years ago, working with mobile devices in the field was a trend in its infancy, and applications designed for such products were new. Now, as software developers have worked to refine these tools, what these apps offer is continuously expanding as technology becomes more sophisticated.
The result is a chance at increased efficiency for today’s valuation professionals.
|
|
|
Mortgage solutions provider integrates new credit data
Posted Date: Monday, June 2, 2014
A provider of customer relationship management, marketing, sales and content solutions for the mortgage industry, announced it will integrate new consumer tri-merge credit data into its all-in-one marketing, sales and CRM platform. Continue reading to learn about the integration.
|
|
|
Tips on implementing appraisal technology
Posted Date: Tuesday, May 27, 2014
The way in which Americans perform their jobs is shifting every day thanks to the evolution of technology.
Just as the desktop computer sparked a revolution in the ‘80s and ‘90s, its transportable offspring is doing the same this decade.
Smartphones and tablets are arming America’s workforce with new tools, apps and software options that help simplify and streamline everything we do, from wherever we want to do it.
But the problem with being flooded with new technological tools at our fingertips is having to sort through all that’s available in order to get to what is necessary and helpful.
The issue of adapting to modern technology is especially pertinent for the appraisal profession, which, as has been well-documented, has a workforce that skews older than most.
Understanding and embracing the newest tools available probably comes second nature to the 20-somethings entering the valuation space today, but what about the majority of appraisers who have been doing things a certain way since before today’s trainees were even born?
|
|
|
Miller to reveal the three most powerful growth strategies
Posted Date: Monday, May 26, 2014
Dan Miller, chief executive officer at RightNow Consulting, will be giving title agents insights on how to meet the needs of their best customers at the 2014 National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) in New Orleans, June 9-11.
|
|
|
Mortgage servicer continues to find itself in hot water
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Ocwen Financial Services, the largest nonbank mortgage loan servicer in the United States, is being sued as part of a Pennsylvania class action lawsuit alleging that Ocwen failed to file loan satisfaction documents in a timely fashion, HousingWire reported.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on May 15.
By law, servicers are required to file loan satisfaction documents within 60 days after receiving full payment from the borrower. These documents are necessary to show that requisite debts have been paid and that the subsequent lien has been released.
|
|
|
Mortgage servicer names new vice president of review services
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
A national mortgage services provider announced May 19 that the firm has named an industry veteran as the company’s new senior vice president of review services. The company said this person will lead the company’s due diligence and loan review business in this newly created position. Keep reading to learn about the new hire.
|
|
|
New tool to highlight flash flood risk
Posted Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
CoreLogic, a global property information, analytics and data-enabled services provider, has announced the launch of the CoreLogic Flash Flood Risk Score, a new and unique data analytics tool designed to inform insurers and settlement services professionals of the overall projection of flash flood risk beyond established Federal Emergency Management Agency floodplains. Continue reading to learn about the tool’s capabilities.
|
|
|
|