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IN THE NEWS New Mexico rank: 13 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate August 2013 1.8% Unemployment Rate 2.9% 6.8% year ago 1.9% 4.1% 7.0% year-over-year change -4.7% -29.9% -2.9% Top County TorraNCe CouNTy 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate August 2013 2.0% 6.2% year ago 2.8% 6.9% year-over-year change -27.3% -9.8% Top Core-Based Statistical area GraNTS, NM 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate August 2013 1.6% 5.0% year ago 1.6% 6.0% year-over-year change 2.1% -16.4% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the August 2013 foreclosure rate. All figures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate reflects preliminary August 2013 figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. New York rank: 3 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate August 2013 2.9% Unemployment Rate 5.6% 7.6% year ago 3.0% 6.4% 8.6% year-over-year change -4.5% -12.0% -11.6% Top County SullivaN CouNTY 90+ Day Delinquency Rate August 2013 3.0% Foreclosure Rate 2.0% year ago 3.1% 3.5% year-over-year change -1.0% -42.6% Top Core-Based Statistical area amSTerdam, NY 90+ Day Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate August 2013 4.5% 9.0% year ago 4.8% 8.9% year-over-year change -5.6% 0.8% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the August 2013 foreclosure rate. All figures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate reflects preliminary August 2013 figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. 86 Claims Recovery Financial Ready for Business Helmed by founder and CEO Jodi Gaines, Claims Recovery Financial Services, LLC (CRFS), is primed for a growth and expansion project in New York State that will also cement the claims processor as the largest private employer in Orleans County. CRFS will expand its operations into the former JPMorgan Chase complex at 231 E. Ave. in Albion, recently purchased by developer Roger Hungerford/Talis Equity. The company's goal is to have all CRFS employees in New York transitioned into the new 60,000-square-foot facility by March 2014, as well as fast-track recruiting efforts aimed at hiring another 315 employees, with 150 filled immediately. CRFS has, to date, hired 55 former JPMorgan Chase employees who lost their jobs as a result of the bank closing its Albion call center that employed approximately 413 local residents. At a formal press conference attended by officials from all over New York, Gaines— who launched CRFS at her kitchen table in 2002 with one employee and one client—stated, "One of the many benefits of the Chase complex is that it's a state-of-the-art, turnkey facility, which will allow CRFS to ramp up quickly and fast-track our muchneeded expansion." Empire State Development offered CRFS an $872,500 incentive package to assist with job creation and retention. Gaines and CRFS were also granted local incentives from the Orleans Revolving Loan Fund (ORLF), which approved a low-interest loan in the amount of $250,000 for the purchase of new equipment, and the Orleans Economic Development Agency (OEDA), which is making available sales tax abatement for the related equipment purchases. A New York State Community Development Block Grant was also awarded to assist CRFS in its expansion. U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) personally intervened on Gaines' behalf with JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to give CRFS immediate access to Chase workers seeking jobs. Speaking at the press conference, Schumer said, "This effort has been months in the making and the results speak for themselves: jobs, jobs, jobs. Fifty-five former Chase workers are putting their skills to work for CRFS and there are even more jobs to come. Thanks to Jodi Gaines and her commitment to the local workforce, CRFS will expand in New York State. The future is bright for CRFS and Orleans County." Cuomo Proposes Reforms in ForcePlaced Insurance New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed a series of sweeping reforms for that state's force-placed insurance industry. The reforms come in the wake of an investigation that found numerous instances of abuse among lenders and force-placed insurance providers. Forced-placed insurance, which is insurance that a lien holder places on a property to cover a lapse of mortgage insurance, has drawn particular scrutiny from regulators because it has proven relatively easy to abuse. The cost of the insurance is paid up front by the lien holder but added to the balance of the lien. Abuse has been particularly prevalent in cases where the loan servicer owns the insurer. "Two years ago, my administration launched an investigation of the force-placed insurance industry that revealed widespread abuses of consumers by banks and mortgage companies," Gov. Cuomo said. "Today we are taking a major step in righting this injustice and reforming the industry by proposing tough new regulations to protect homeowners. Insurers should be on notice that New York State is going to continue rooting out abuse in the industry and protecting taxpayers." The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) began its investigation of the force-placed insurance business in 2011. It found that force-placed insurance can be two to 10 more times expensive than voluntary insurance, despite offering far less protection. "Our investigation uncovered a kickback culture in this industry that inflated premiums and did serious damage to struggling homeowners," said Benjamin Lawsky, superintendent of DFS. "These new rules will help ensure that homeowners remain protected and force-placed insurers don't simply slide back to the bad old practices of the past." The new regulations would prevent force-placed insurers from issuing insurance on mortgaged property serviced by a bank or property affiliated with the insurer. They would also prohibit the payment of commission on force-placed insurance policies.

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