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43 » VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM THE RISE OF MOM-AND- POP REO INVESTORS Over half of investors at foreclosure auctions plan to purchase fewer than five properties in 2019, according to the 2019 Buyer Insights Survey Report from Auction. com. e report found that 51% of auction buyers are these "mom and pop" investors, while 22% of buyers plan to purchase more than 10 properties for the year. Only 2% of buyers said they plan to purchase more than 100 properties in 2019. "Foreclosure auctions are no longer dominated by larger investors able to navigate what was an opaque process of purchasing a property at the courthouse steps or from a hard-to-find REO asset manager," said Jason Allnutt, CEO at Auction.com." e majority of foreclosure and REO auction buyers are now smaller, mom-and-pop investors who are taking advantage of a much more accessible buying experience." Auction.com's Survey Report is based on a survey sent to more than 4,700 buyers who had purchased at least three properties on the Auction.com platform. e survey was conducted between June 6 and June 20, 2019, with 197 buyers responding. According to respondents, the South is one of the most popular locations for foreclosure buyers, with 73% purchasing properties in the South region of the country, the highest share of any region. A good chunk are purchasing outside of their location, as 24% of survey respondents said their local housing market is overvalued with a correction possible. Earlier this year, Auction.com took a look at what investment strategy is the best for whatever your endgame would be. Advantages to real estate investment compared to other investment strategies include appreciating property values, easy access to credit with a property as collateral, equity buildup, and deferred profits. ere are two main strategies to real estate investment, Auction.com notes: buy and hold, and fix and flip. "Opting for a long-term or short-term strategy in building your investment portfolio is a personal decision," Auction.com notes. "You should consider your investment goals, capital availability, your risk tolerance level, and flexibility as it applies to your exit strategy." FHFA DIRECTOR MARK CALABRIA ON INCREASED GSE CAPITAL RETENTION e U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that they had agreed to modifications to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs) that will permit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to retain additional earnings in excess of the $3 billion capital reserves currently permitted by their PSPAs. ese modifications are an important step toward implementing Treasury's recommended reforms that will define a limited role for the Federal Government in the housing finance system and protect taxpayers against future bailouts," U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said. FHFA Director Mark Calabria released a statement recently regarding the letter agreement with the Treasury to increase Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac capital retention. "e Enterprises are leveraged nearly 1,000-to-one, ensuring they would fail during an economic downturn—exposing taxpayers once again. is letter agreement between Treasury and FHFA, which allows the Enterprises to retain capital of up to $45 billion combined, is an important milestone on the path to reform," FHFA Director Calabria said. "FHFA commits to working with Treasury in the coming months to amend the share agreements and further advance broader housing finance reform. ese reform goals include limiting the government's role in housing finance, increasing marketplace competition, focusing on affordable housing, and sustainable homeownership. e status quo is not an option. Now is the time to act." To compensate Treasury for the dividends that it would have received absent these modifications, Treasury's liquidation preferences for its Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac preferred stock will gradually increase by the amount of the additional capital reserves until the liquidation preferences increase by $22 billion for Fannie Mae and $17 billion for Freddie Mac. Treasury and each of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also agreed to negotiate an additional amendment to the PSPAs that would further enhance taxpayer protections by adopting covenants that are broadly consistent with the recommendations for administrative reforms contained in the plan.