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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 26 December 2025 C O V E R S T O R Y Q: Are there opportunities for greater collaboration across preservation, asset management, and mortgage servicing that the industry hasn't fully capitalized on yet? PASALA: Yes. ServiceLink offers an end-to-end solution that brings all these areas together, which helps to reduce costs for our clients by streamlining the process. This is something that we do that is unique and is an opportunity for the industry as a whole to take note. There is often a focus on individual partners, which can segment and bifur- cate the process. When you collaborate across preservation, asset management, and mortgage servicing—along with title and auction—you plug those gaps and meet all their needs that otherwise are left to the client to fill. This is where offerings like EXOS One Marketplace really benefit our clients. Q: What are the "blind spots" you think the industry still has: areas that aren't getting enough attention but will be critical for long-term sustainability? PASALA: The industry does a great job of identifying a wide variety of areas that need attention. What is missing is the overall view that considers all these individual focuses—that often are tug- ging in different directions—to provide insight and pull together the big picture. DENIA RAY SVP, National Field Services, Genstone Field Services Q: What key trends are currently shaping the property preservation space, whether in technology, regulation, or client expectations? RAY: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is emerging as a leading tool in property preservation, offering unmatched efficiency in identifying deficiencies and processing hundreds of images within minutes. By generating punch lists tailored to agency, investor, or client requirements, AI adds a critical layer of quality assurance without replacing manual review. On the regulatory front, the CFPB continues to monitor agencies and servicers to ensure preservation and inspection services remain fair and reasonable for borrowers who cure defaults. This oversight has prevented non-HUD agencies from significantly raising rates, keeping them aligned with HUD standards. As a result, industry cost estimators struggle to justify price increases, leaving preservation compa- nies to absorb additional expenses such as mileage for servicing rural properties. Q: We've spoken before about the impact of HUD pricing on vendors and contractors. How is this affecting the health of the industry, and what would you like to see change in HUD's approach? RAY: HUD insures 57% of all serious- ly delinquent loans while holding only a 16.5% market share—yet its outdated pricing model is crippling the property preservation industry. Despite decades of cost-of-living increases, HUD's reim- bursement rates for essential services like lock changes, winterization, and debris removal remain virtually un- changed. For example, lock changes still pay $60, though inflation-adjusted rates should exceed $125. Similar gaps exist across all service categories. Mortgagee Letter 1995-25 paid $60-$75 for a lock change, in multiple states. Today, they pay $60, despite a cost-of-living adjustment during this time of 112.58%, which would put this service in the $125.50-$159.44 range. Dry winterizations paid $100-$150 in multiple states, and today pay only $100, despite COLA showing they should be in the $214-$318.87 range. Cubic yards of debris paid $50-$60 under Mortgagee Letter 2007-03. Today, they pay less, at $50, despite the COLA increasing 56.25% during this period, putting this line item more realistically in the $78.13-$93.75 range. This failure to update pricing has driven 80% of qualified contractors out of the market, leaving communities vulnerable and FHA portfolios at the highest servicing risk. Unrealistic con- veyance standards and stagnant rates have pushed tier-1 banks out of FHA servicing, shifting disproportionate risk to preservation companies. HUD must act now. Fair, reasonable pricing and annual reviews are critical to sustaining the industry and protecting neighborhoods. Legal networks already benefit from regular pricing updates aligned with Fannie Mae standards— field service providers deserve the same consideration. Without immediate reform, the industry faces collapse. Q: How are companies like Genstone managing to maintain service quality and compliance standards despite financial pressure from outdated pricing models? RAY: It is a significant challenge! Our acquisition by Genstone Group has been a game-changer, giving us access to shared services—legal, marketing, IT,