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California Joyce Essex joyce@essexharvey.com www.EssexHarvey.com 310-777-6375 phone 310-922-7476 cell STAT INSIGHT 37.1% Distressed share of home sales in California in March 2013, down from 65.5% in January 2012. Source: ForeclosureRadar Your Los Angeles Area Reo Specialists IVERY SUMMERS The REODIVA, VP of REO David Murphy, R.E. Serving Los Angeles County, Los Angeles City, And Surrounding Areas. Your #1 Reo Team In Los Angeles, County We Handle Your Reo Assets From Acquisition To Disposition, Residential & Commercial. Contact Ivery! 8939 Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 261 Los Angeles, CA 90045 o: 310.649.2711 c: 310.920.3455 f: 310.649.5907 ivery.sells@verizon.net | www.thereodiva.com 82 experienced retail bankers. It's learning, but it's on demand, bite-size, and, most importantly, addictive," said Gail Galuppo, COO of California-based BankersLab. The app can be used independently or to support the CollectionsLab training course. It is available for both iOS and Android devices and is priced at $4.99. Survey: CFPB and Dodd-Frank Plague Lenders with Uncertainty "Uncertainty" is a term that has plagued the lending industry for some time. Since the introduction of Dodd-Frank three years ago, uncertainty about the future of industry regulation has been a source of concern among close to half of lenders, according to QuestSoft, a Laguna Hills, Californiabased software provider. QuestSoft's fifth annual compliance survey reveals at least 49 percent of lenders have ranked Dodd-Frank-related uncertainty as a high concern for the past three years. "Dodd-Frank changes are a long train running and will directly affect everyone involved in the mortgage lending industry from now up until January 2014 implementation when a sense of certainty will hopefully be reestablished," said Leonard Ryan, president of QuestSoft. This year's survey also revealed concerns surrounding new and developing rules from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)—most notably the Truth in Lending Disclosure and Good Faith Estimate disclosure. These two rules are of high concern for 58.8 percent of lenders surveyed and were labeled a "medium concern" among another 25.8 percent of lenders. Pending rules from the CFPB also rank high with 52.7 percent of lenders expressing high concern in this area. An additional 28 percent labeled other CFPB rules as a "medium concern." "Lenders have a justified reason to be concerned when facing a multitude of regulations that could jeopardize compliance," Ryan said. He gave the CFPB credit for working with industry leaders but added that "reforms and requirements can lead to stress and unforeseen consequences—especially if lenders are kept in the dark until the implementation date." Other triggers for unease among lenders include enhanced scrutiny of the Community Reinvestment Act, state consumer lending laws, and the National Mortgage Licensing System Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act. California Pending Sales Up in February, REO, Short Sales Decline California saw a month-over-month increase in pending home sales in February, while distressed sales were down for both REOs and short sales, the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) reported. C.A.R.'s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) was up 8.7 percent to 110.2 in February, an increase from a revised 101.4 in January. The index is based on signed contracts. Year-over-year, pending sales decreased 8.2 percent from an index reading of 120. Overall, distressed property sales accounted for 32.9 percent of sales in February, a decrease from 35.6 percent in January and a steep decline from 53.3 percent a year ago. The share of short sales also slowed, falling to 19.9 percent in February, down from 21.5 percent in January and 24.8 percent from February 2012. REO sales represented 12.6 percent of sales in February, down from 13.7 percent month-over-month and 28 percent yearover-year. According to C.A.R.'s Unsold Inventory Index, the supply of REOs remained unchanged from January at two months. As for non-distressed sales, or equity sales, the share increased to 67.1 percent, which is the first time equity sales made up more than two-thirds of all home sales since April 2008. In January, equity sales accounted for 64.4 percent of sales, and in February 2012, equity sales accounted for 46.7 percent of all sales. Grant for $1M Awarded to Implement California Homeowner Bill of Rights The California Attorney General's office awarded a $1 million grant to the National Housing Law Project (NHLP) for assistance in implementing the California Homeowner Bill of Rights (HBOR).

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