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The trade organization reported 64 percent of California Realtors expressed difficulty in closing short sales—an improvement from 77 percent in August 2011 and 70 percent in 2010. However, the more significant improvement was the drop in Realtors who described the short sale process as "extremely difficult." More than half (56 percent) of the Realtors surveyed in 2011 said the process was "extremely difficult" compared to about a third (34 percent) in 2012. The survey is based on Realtors' most recent short sale transaction. "While it's encouraging that lenders and servicers are making headway in improving their short sale processes, they still have more work to do to ensure not only Realtors, but also home sellers and buyers have a better experience when dealing with short sales," said C.A.R. President LeFrancis Arnold. Overall satisfaction with lenders during the short sale process improved, with 28 percent expressing satisfaction in 2012, compared to 16 percent in 2011. A smaller share was also dissatisfied, with 59 percent expressing dissatisfaction, down from 75 percent in 2011. In addition, more than six in Realtors said they would not refer buyers to the lender for future home purchases, down from 78 percent in 2011. Among the main obstacles Realtors faced, a lender's slow response time to a short sale package was the most cited, with 67 percent of Realtors marking it as an issue, according to the survey. Poor communication with the lender representative was the second most cited obstacle, with 55 percent of Realtors selecting it as an issue. Half of the Realtors said repeated requests for documentation hindered them as well. Other obstacles included a buyer backing out or long negotiations (32 percent), problems with second lien holders (23 percent), and a lender foreclosing on a borrower before the transaction is completed (8 percent). The GSEs and Bank of America have addressed some of the issues through changes to their short sale process. "A recent change announced by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to align Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac short sale guidelines will allow lenders and servicers to quickly and more easily qualify borrowers for a short sale, further improving the process," said Arnold. "C.A.R. has long advocated for a standardized short sale process, and agreeing to a more standardized process may be the best way for banks, servicers, Realtors, 96 and homeowners to facilitate the sale of homes that qualify." The survey also included a recently developed Lender Performance Index (LPI), which measures how satisfied a Realtor is with a lender. With 50 as the median, the index stood at 23 in 2012, up from 17 in 2011 and 16 in 2010. Foreclosure Activity in California Slows to 5-Year Low A stronger economy and housing market and an increase in short sales brought foreclosure activity in California down to the lowest level since 2007, according to a report from San Diego-based DataQuick in October. The number of residential properties entering the foreclosure process, or that received a Notice of Default (NoD), totaled 49,026 in the third quarter of this year, down from 10.2 percent and a steep 31.2 percent drop from the 2011 third quarter, DataQuick revealed. The most recent quarterly figure is the lowest since the first quarter of 2007, when 46,760 NoDs were recorded. NoDs reached a high of 135,431 in the first quarter of 2009. Short sales in California were up, accounting for 26 percent of resale activity in the third quarter, up from 24 percent in the previous quarter and 22.9 a year ago. "[D]uring the past year, we've seen short sales overtake the foreclosure process as the procedure of choice to deal with homeowner distress. That may change after New Year's because the temporary 'debt forgiveness' feature in the tax code is set to expire as part of the so-called 'fiscal cliff,'" explained John Walsh, DataQuick president. Foreclosure resales were down in the third quarter, accounting for 20 percent of all resale activity in the state. In the second quarter of this year, foreclosure resales accounted for 27.8 percent of all resale activity and 34.2 percent a year ago. At its peak, foreclosure resales reached 57.8 percent in the first quarter of 2009. BankersLab Releases Game Training Product to Test Collection Strategies There is a range of simulation games that replicate what it's like to be in a war zone and games that let you build your own city. To help banks tackle the issue of mortgage delinquencies, BankersLab announced the launch of CollectionLab, a simulation game that allows banks to test strategies in a virtual environment as they attempt to optimize delinquent collections. "The secret to successful delinquent collections is finding the right balance between cost and benefit, while still maintaining customer satisfaction. We wanted to create a product that taught professionals how to confidently walk this tightrope," said Michelle Katics, BankersLab CEO. In order to win in CollectionLab, players must operate the most profitable virtual bank with the most satisfied customers. Teams are challenged in areas of collection management including staffing, resource allocation, economic stress, and product growth. The company stated future releases of the product will include certification programs. BankersLab is the first company to deliver a suite of integrated gamified training products to the retail banking industry. The international company has U.S. headquarters in California and global operations in Brazil, UAE, Thailand, and South Korea. California's Median Home Price at 4-Year High: C.A.R. The California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) continued to report a shortage of inventory in September, which is limiting home sales but seems to be pushing up median home prices. According to C.A.R. in October, the median home price in California is now at the highest level in more than four years. The statewide median price of an existing, single-family home reached $345,000 in September, up 0.3 percent from August's $343,820 median price. The gain was also a 19.5 percent increase from September 2011, the highest yearly gain since May 2010 and the biggest gain overall since August 2008, when the median price was $352,730. For seven straight months, prices have increased monthly and yearly. Sales, on the other hand, fell in September, sinking 5.2 percent from a revised 510,910 in August and declined 1.2 percent from a revised 490,280 a year ago. "Sales in the inland and coastal markets continue to move in different directions. Low inventory‚ especially in distressed areas‚ is dampening sales activity," said C.A.R. President LeFrancis Arnold.

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