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84 a Research Assistant to Cynthia Starnes in updating the Article 9 section for omson- West's Michigan Compiled Laws Annotated Uniform Commercial Code Forms, 3rd Edi- tion to reflect the massive revisions of 2001. Eric Marshack is the Managing Attorney for e Mortgage Law Firm's Oregon Office. Marshack has over 10 years of experience spe- cializing in lender-related bankruptcy matters, foreclosure cases, trustee defense, title issues, and related litigation in state and federal courts throughout Oregon and Washington. He graduated from the University Of Oregon School of Law in 2004. During school, he was awarded the American Bankruptcy Institute Certificate of Excellence in Bankruptcy. Mr. Marshack has spent his entire legal career in the fields of bankruptcy, creditor's rights, and related litigation. He is admitted to practice in the states of Oregon and Washington, including all Federal District Courts and Bankruptcy Courts. e Mortgage Law Firm provides compre- hensive legal services in the mortgage default industry, including foreclosure, bankruptcy, loss mitigation, litigation, REO, title curative, eviction, replevin, and deeds-in-lieu. With the recent expansion, the firm currently has offices located in Temecula, California; Honolulu, Hawaii; Phoenix, Arizona; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Portland, Oregon; and Spokane, Washington. WASHINGTON Zillow's Forward- Looking Forecast In a recent report, Seattle-based Zillow indicated that rising mortgage rates and an increasing demand for rentals set the stage for the 2019 housing market, as even current homeowners start to feel locked into their mortgage rates. Despite steady rise during the past two years, mortgage rates remained lower than they were during the recession and below average, given the current level of economic growth. e report stated this trend will change in 2019 as the 30-year fixed rate mort- gage reaches 5.8 percent. It also noted that af- fordability will take a hit, making homeown- ership difficult for many. Currently, rising mortgage payments outpace the home-value gains—a phenomenon that may encourage homeowners to stay put as they hold on to low mortgage rates and discourage first-time homebuyers—according to Zillow. As higher rates hinder affordability, independent, patriotic people who use real estate investing to create long-term financial security for the people they care about," Rand said. "ere has never been a total solution to help them envision, plan, execute, and man- age a long-term investment strategy. We are incredibly excited to join forces with Renters Warehouse to create a first-of-its-kind solu- tion. We are going to help millions of people own America." At the time of acquisition, OwnAmerica had over $21 billion in total assets on their platform, with over $200 million assets for sale. Post-acquisition, "Renters Warehouse's 14,000 clients across the country will have access to these assets and can build and expand their portfolio through this technology," Renters Warehouse said in a statement. "For sellers, the selling and buying process is discrete. Renters are not disturbed, meaning rental in- come isn't either. Selling commissions are also nearly half of what you'd pay with a traditional real estate agent." OREGON The Mortgage Law Firm Announces Expansion e Mortgage Law Firm has announced its expansion into Oregon and Washington, add- ing to the firm's existing footprint of Arizona, California, Hawaii, and Oklahoma. Jason Cotton, Owner of e Mortgage Law Firm, said, "We opened these offices, first and foremost, to meet the current needs of our clients. But, the expansion is also a natural progression for our attorneys who grew up in the Pacific Northwest. It is important to e Mortgage Law Firm that we have meaningful roots in the states we represent and these states were a perfect fit." Renee M. Parker joined e Mortgage Law Firm in 2017. She is currently the Manag- ing Attorney for the firm's Washington office. Parker has over 13 years of experience handling foreclosure matters, complex bankruptcy and civil matters, title insurance issues, and mort- gage banking litigation. Parker was admitted to the Washington State Bar in 2005, California State Bar in 2008, the United States District Court of Colorado in 2010. She was also admitted to e Supreme Court of the United States in 2011 (as well as all its District State Courts), United States Courts for the 9th Circuit in 2011, the Oregon State Bar in 2014, and the Arizona State Bar in 2018. During law school, Parker worked as aspiring homeowners will continue rent- ing, as a result of which the slight drops in rent, in the recent past, will reverse and turn positive again, the report revealed. However, the continued steady investment in apart- ment construction will prevent rents from drastically surging above income growth. e report also noted that in the third quarter of 2018, the U.S. median rent cost 28.2 percent of the U.S. median income—considerably higher than the 25.8 percent renters paid historically. Zillow expects an increase in the discon- nect between urban jobs and suburban residents to continue in 2019, and contribute to longer, more crowded commutes. is will affect those who have long commutes to live within their means as most jobs are confined to urban areas, and affording a home in urban markets. For example, a home in Boston is valued 303 percent more per square foot than a typical outlying home, while the premium for homes in central Washington, D.C., compared to outlying areas is 218 percent per square foot, the report noted. Pointing out the areas that lost Amazon's headquarters bids to suburban New York and Washington, D.C., the report said that At- lanta, a former Amazon HQ2 contender, has seen some action despite it being passed over by the prime vendor. A smaller Seattle-based company named Convoy is expected to open its East Coast office in the metro. ere is also a possibility that Norfolk Southern may relocate its headquarters there. In the wake of deadly fires that tore into California, builders and developers will focus on preventative and/or protected building materials and designs, according to Zillow. Building costs are surging, and insurers are apprehensive offering policies in danger zones leading to slower and costlier rebuild- ing. Zillow's projections for homes inundated by rising sea levels and storm surges over the course of a typical 30-year mortgage begun in 2020 are not encouraging. In October, home values were up 7.7 percent from a year earlier, to a U.S. median of $221,500. One mitigating effect to rising mortgage rates will be slower home value growth, Zillow indicated. Forecasting a growth of 6.4 percent from October 2018 to October 2019; a Zillow survey of housing experts and economists anticipates a 3.79 percent increase in home values for 2019. Both forecasts indicate cooling from red-hot growth of 8 percent in March of this year.

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