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Integrating RentPointe with the EQ Investor Platform provides multiple benefits to users, including a higher, more efficient workflow; access to Equator and Carrington data for net present value modeling; full transparency and audit compliance; and access to an electronic marketplace for real-time management of vendor orders. "The integration of RentPointe into our EQ Investor Platform provides the market with something it desperately needs—a better way to manage today's larger, more geographically diverse rental property portfolios," said Equator COO John Vella. Carrington Technology Solutions is based in Alisa Viejo, California. Equator Business Solutions is headquartered in Los Angeles. Bay Area Sales Down from Year Ago, Median Price Sees Double-Digit Gain Overall Bay Area home sales were up month-over-month but down from a year ago, according to DataQuick's March home sales report for the region. Home sales—including both new and resale houses and condos—totaled 7,263 in the nine-county Bay Area in March. The figure represents a 34.4 percent increase from the month before, but sales were still down 6 percent March 2012, according to the San Diego-based company. DataQuick noted low-end sales saw a steep drop, but transactions for homes valued at or above $500,000 jumped, adding a lift to the median sales price, which has risen yearly for 12 straight months. The median price paid for a home in the Bay Area stood at $436,000 in March, up 7.7 percent monthly and 21.8 percent yearly. According to DataQuick, the area's annual price increases have been in the doubledigits over the last 10 months. The median is still 34.4 percent below the June and July 2007 peak of $665,000, but far above the March 2009 post-peak low of $290,000 "Higher sales in the middle and top of the housing market reflect improved consumer confidence, ultra-low mortgage rates, and the unleashing of more pent-up demand than many anticipated. There's been a shift in psychology, where more people worry prices will rise and fewer fear a decline," said John Walsh, DataQuick president. "In the more affordable markets, we've seen a big drop in foreclosures, which limits the supply of homes for sale." 80 Distressed property sales in the Bay Area fell to the lowest level in five years, DataQuick reported. The data provider found foreclosure resales and short sales together accounted for about 30 percent of resales in the Bay Area last month. The overall share is down from 35 percent in February and 49 percent in March 2012. Foreclosure resales accounted for just 10.7 percent of Bay Area resales, down from 14 percent in February and down from 25.5 percent a year ago. Last month's level was the lowest since November 2007 when foreclosure resales were 10.1 percent of the resale market. Foreclosure resales peaked at 52 percent in February 2009. California's Homeowner Bill of Rights Stalls Foreclosures The California Homeowner Bill of Rights is the main driving force behind the recent slowdown in foreclosure sales and short sales in the Golden State, according to a research report from Barclays. In addition to stalling the foreclosure process, provisions in the new bill, which took effect January 1, 2013, have also led to an increase in litigation risk for servicers, analysts at Barclays found. According to the report, short sale activity and foreclosure sales have been dwindling over the past few months, as indicated by foreclosure-to-REO and foreclosure-to-liquidation roll rates. At the same time, roll rates in other states appear to be steady. As a result of the legislation, Barclays believes "servicers have become significantly more cautious when carrying out foreclosure sales" in the state. While the bill offers several protections to homeowners, one particular provision that allows borrowers to sue servicers for "material violations" of the Homeowner Bill of Rights could result in additional costs for servicers. Violations of the law include dual-tracking, failing to provide a single point-of-contact, and neglecting to deliver proper notice of loss mitigation options. The report explained that prior to a foreclosure sale, homeowners can seek injunctive relief to halt the foreclosure process. If a homeowner secures an injunction, the borrower can pass all legal costs to the servicer even if no material violation of the Homeowner Bill of Rights is proven later, Barclays explained. "Our understanding is that securing an injunction may require only a declaration from the borrower that a material violation of the [legislation] has occurred and some reasonable justification for further investigation into the alleged breach. It is possible that multiple consumer rights attorneys will offer their services on a contingent basis to borrowers facing foreclosure, effectively providing the homeowner with a zero-cost option to pursue litigation," the report stated. If the request for an injunction is granted, legal costs could easily climb to thousands of dollars as the court looks into the allegations. The process could also add another 6–12 months to the foreclosure process, according to Barclays' report. "Furthermore, borrowers are much more incentivized to demand a copy of the promissory note, the chain of mortgage assignments, and the borrower's payment history to collect evidence that a breach of [the Homeowner Bill of Rights] occurred, further stalling the foreclosure process," the report explained. Even though California is not a judicial state, Barclays' analysts suspect the increase in litigation risks and the extended foreclosure timelines might cause servicers to pursue more judicial foreclosures, which are exempt from the Bill of Rights' provisions. Capsilon Combines Katalyst and DocVelocity Capsilon, a San Francisco-based provider of cloud-based document sharing, imaging, and document management solutions, announced it has merged its Katalyst and DocVelocity imaging systems into a combined offering. The new product, still called "DocVelocity," is available to all customers of both Capsilon and DocVelocity, giving them the same unified technology platform and consistent support, training, and services offerings. The unified system is scalable to meet the needs of both large and small mortgage lenders. In addition, certain optional capabilities, such as mobile access and enterprise interoperability (both previously provided only by Capsilon to its customers) are now available to all new and prior DocVelocity customers. "Our DocVelocity offering combines an award-winning, highly scalable document management solution with superior maintenance, support, and professional services capabilities," said Sanjeev Malaney, CEO at Capsilon. "The unified DocVelocity system enables Capsilon to serve small, medium, and large mortgage lenders equally well with a single industry-standard solution."

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