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DS News November 2019

DSNews delivers stories, ideas, links, companies, people, events, and videos impacting the mortgage default servicing industry.

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92 CALIFORNIA Xactware and RES.NET Partner for Digital Asset Management California-headquartered RES.NET has announced an integration between RES.NET and the Xactware RepairWise and XactPR M platforms. e combined solution, tailored for repair and renova- tion servicers and investors, supports every phase of the renovation process and allows servicers to analyze a wide variety of upgrade scenarios for each property before committing to a course of action. A large class of buyers are currently demanding an upgraded, aesthetically pleasing, turnkey property. ese types of extensive renovations have even become a favorite with investors, with GSEs such as Fannie Mae finding value in the comple- tion of large-scale renovations. By moving a property into a higher condition classifi- cation and attracting an expanded pool of buyers, servicers are reducing days on the market and the associated costs. "Critical milestones have to be account- ed for throughout a repair or renovation project," said Dave Obert, VP of Xactware PropTech Solutions. "e integration between these two solutions will organize, simplify, and modernize that process." While renovations have proven effec- tive, they are also highly dependent on local factors such as the cost of labor and materials, communication with vendors across the country, and the accurate ap- praisal of comps, which can vary greatly even within a single city. e integration between Xactware and RES.NET provides a streamlined solution for this phenome- non—from value assessment, cost estima- tion, and bid management, through scope approval, project tracking, and perfor- mance analysis. e Repair Module now represents 460 regions across the United States and Canada. Angela Hurst, SVP for RES.NET, added, "RES.NET takes pride in offering a complete servicer suite of solutions to assist customers as they pursue REO, loss mitigation, valuations, property preserva- tion, and now, repairs and renovations. e Repair Module represents the latest phase in our mission to provide the industry with practical technology solutions that address our clients' needs. Together with Xact- ware, we provide a comprehensive solution that empowers servicers by bringing order to an inherently complex process. e Re- pair Module incorporates cost estimation from three decades of RES.NET project planning and workflow solutions with the value-added and wide-ranging cost data from more than 460 locally researched price regions from Xactware. We have created an agile application that will evolve alongside the real estate market and meet the needs of modern servicers looking to pivot as new strategies and tactics emerge." CoreLogic Announces Updated RCT Express Solution CoreLogic, a California-based property information, analytics, and data-enabled solutions provider, announced the avail- ability of its updated RCT Express recon- struction estimating and risk assessment solution that now includes the ability to provide valuations for large tract homes (LTH). is update gives insurers the abil- ity to better assess and price LTH policies, bringing more powerful coverage adequacy tools to the insurance industry. "e rising popularity of large tract homes has created new challenges for insurers, who have historically struggled to distinguish these structures from high value homes that have more custom at- tributes," said Benjamin Abbott, Product Manager for CoreLogic Insurance Solu- tions group. "Because of the size of these LTHs, many LTH homeowners policies have valuations more suitable for a custom home." Within RCT Express, CoreLogic can identify granular traits of LTH structures. Some general distinctions between LTHs and high value homes include: » Location and design: LTHs usually make up an entire subdivision and have minimal variations in the building layout. » Materials: e materials used to construct LTHs are of less quality compared to materials used in the construction of a high-value home. » Construction protocol: LTH construction practices are designed to be as efficient as possible, resulting in less waste, reducing costs, and increasing overall productivity in time to build. » Soft costs: Other construction costs, such as contingencies, architect work, engineer- ing fees, and markups, are all more predict- able and less expensive in LTHs compared to high value homes. "With our latest RCT Express release, CoreLogic is making it possible for insur- ers to bring new levels of accuracy to their clients' home property insurance policies, helping insurers continue to build trust and confidence with policyholders," Ab- bott added. RCT Express is a reconstruction esti- mating and risk assessment solution that offers an unprecedented view of structure risk to support the underwriting workflow in helping insurance carriers extend the right coverage and better protect policy- holders. Bay Area Zombie Homes Linger Zombie homes in the Bay Area fell from around 3,000 to around 350 after 2015, Fox 13 reported, but San Francisco's zombie homes are likely to never go away entirely. Local real estate professionals note several problems standing in the way of fixing the problem, including prices not being lowered for vacant properties. Addi- tionally, a home-building boom is drawing buyers to new construction. According to CoreLogic, the nine- county San Francisco Bay Area saw the purchase of 7,404 new and existing houses and condos in July 2019. "People coming into the market are saying, 'To heck with buying a used home, I'd rather buy a new home and have every- thing brand new in it,'" Michael Madson, Lipply Real Estate, told Fox 13. Madson adds that homeowners have little defense against neighborhood zom- bies, the banks who own them, and local California Handling REOs and Corporate Owned Assets for Over 25 Years Joyce Essex Harvey & Sean Freeman Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage 310.720.9067 (c) 310.777.6375 (o) Joyce@EssexHarvey.com EssexHarvey.com Woman-Owned Business Serving Los Angeles County CalDRE#00935813/01366376

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