Technology

AMS Servicing LLC, a national specialty servicer for residential and small balance commercial mortgages, recently selected the TrackPoint default servicing platform to facilitate short sale transactions on behalf of its clients. AMS Servicing uses TrackPoint Short Sale with its short sale underwriting process to create customized, end-to-end short sale processes that work with the systems of individual servicers.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued a notice to the chief executives of all the lenders it regulates warning them of the risks involved in real estate-owned exchange programs. Several companies have started marketing real estate-owned exchange programs to national banks as a means to reduce problem assets on their balance sheets, but the OCC says these programs ""can raise significant safety and soundness, legal, and accounting concerns.""

Ohioans undergoing foreclosure mediation who can't afford to hire an attorney now have another option. Capital University Law School recently developed a program to connect law students with people going through foreclosure. Upperclass law students volunteer their time for the pro bono program to help homeowners understand the mediation process.

Freddie Mac issued new policy guidelines to its servicers this week that prohibit foreclosures in the name of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc. (MERS). The electronic registry has come under fire lately, despite the fact that several state courts have recently upheld MERS' right to foreclose. It became a focus of last fall's robo-signing scandal when the MERS name appeared within defective affidavits. Fannie Mae told its servicers last spring they were no longer allowed to foreclose in MERS' name, and now Freddie Mac is following suit.

CoreLogic introduced its newest technology solution, IntelliMods, to the market Thursday. The company says the new Web-based application will allow users to put more distressed homeowners into modified loans by automating decisions and fulfillment for both government and private investor programs. The system automatically runs the necessary calculations to determine borrowers' loan modification eligibility and provides an audit trail of all decisions.

Short Sale Association of America (SSAA) has officially launched its short sale platform to real estate agents and brokers. With over 12 million U.S. homeowners upside-down on their mortgage, Jonathan Bowman, founder of SSAA, notes that the industry certainly has its worked cut out, but he says the resources provided his organization will empower agents at all levels of expertise to reach and effectively assist as many distressed homeowners as possible.

Rowell Auctions, Inc. has launched a new national Internet radio show that will educate listeners about property auctions. The show will feature top real estate and auction leaders from across the country, and will target potential bidders, real estate agents, sellers, and other auction firms. Stanley Tate, CEO of Tate Enterprises in North Miami, Florida and former head of Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC), was the first guest featured on the radio show's inaugural broadcast March 18.

BrokerPriceOpinion.com, a nationwide provider of client-customized valuation solutions, has named Chris McLain as its new director of business development. McLain will manage sales, re-seller relationships, strategic partnerships, and business development for BrokerPriceOpinion.com. He will be based in Gainesville, Florida, providing the company with an East Coast representative as it moves to accelerate growth initiatives in that region.

Woodward Asset Capital has announced plans to launch a new short sale technology application in April that the company says will prevent short sale fraud while reducing transaction times and netting lenders the highest possible sale price. Woodward explained that its new software, VerifiedShortSale, puts the mortgage servicer in control be being first to review every offer while ensuring a transparent process. It's modeled after the company's REO application, OfferSubmission.

There were many who opposed the hefty bank bailouts after the financial crisis set in, and they still have their ethical argument against the government's decision, but the fiscal argument is growing faint. Treasury announced this week that over 99 percent of the funds disbursed to banks through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) have now been recovered. Even the largest bailout of all - that of Fannie and Freddie - is expected to shrink by nearly half over the next 10 years.