DS News - Digital Archives

October, 2012

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

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» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM Movers & Shakers where can be a tough task, which is why DS News highlights those people in the industry who are making things happen. Got something to share with us? Send it to Editor@DSNews.com. One thing's for certain: The default industry doesn't sit still. Keeping up with who's doing what and who went OCC Chief Counsel Retires Julie Williams stepped down from her role as chief counsel for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) at the end of September. During her 19 years at the OCC, she twice served as acting comptroller of the currency and was chief counsel for four different comptrollers. Williams led the OCC's efforts on projects related to new regulations mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act. Equator Hires VPs for Customer Support and Human Resources Equator has two new VPs on its team. The company hired Eddie Torres as VP of customer support. Torres most recently served as SVP and co-head of loan servicing for Rushmore Loan Management, where he was tasked with managing collections, loss mitigation, and data analytics while co-managing business units responsible for areas including foreclosures, bankruptcies, and REOs. In addition, Equator appointed Mira Wolff VP of human resources and administration. A seasoned human resources executive and employment law attorney, Wolff has experience in strategic planning, organizational development, employment compliance, employee relations, and talent acquisition. She most recently served as VP of human resources and employment counsel for Everbridge, Inc. South & Associates Hires Four Associate Attorneys South & Associates, P.C., recently announced the firm hired four new attorneys. Doug Mizer is an associate attorney in South & Associate's Des Moines, Iowa, office. Mizer works in the firm's judicial foreclosure department. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa and his Juris Doctor from the University of Kansas. He is licensed to practice in Iowa. Blair Gisi works as an associate attorney in the firm's judicial foreclosure department in its Wichita, Kansas, office. Gisi received his bachelor's degree from the University of Kansas and his Juris Doctor from the University of St. Thomas School of Law. He is licensed to practice in Kansas and the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. Kara Elgin is an associate attorney working in South & Associates' non-judicial foreclosure department in Overland Park, Kansas. Elgin earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Central Missouri and her Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is licensed to practice in the state of Missouri. Andrew Babitz is an associate attorney supporting the firm's foreclosure, bankruptcy, and eviction departments from its St. Louis office. Babitz received his bachelor's degree from the University of Missouri at Columbia and his Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri at Kansas City. He is licensed to practice in Missouri and the United States District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri. South & Associates is a law firm focused on the protection of creditors' rights and default servicing matters in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa. The firm employs 30 attorneys and more than 130 staff members, operating out of five offices throughout the four states it serves. Its corporate office is located in Overland Park, Kansas. Carrington Holding Company Welcomes Two Leaders Carrington Holding Company brought two new leaders into its family of companies. Lynn Halstead joined Carrington Mortgage Services as VP of wholesale operations. She brings more than 25 years' mortgage banking and real estate lending experience to her new role. Halstead started her career managing originations and operations for Household International. She also served at AMRESCO Residential Mortgage as SVP. In addition, Kevin Cooke Jr. joined Carrington Investment Services, LLC, as managing director, focusing on development and institutional clients. He most recently served as SVP of the sales and business development unit for AMS Servicing, LLC. Prior to that, he was SVP at MOS Group, Inc. In his new position at Carrington, he will represent the firm's entire family of companies and will focus on growing the real estate businesses. Long & Foster Associate Broker Appointed to State Board Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell appointed Catherine M. Noonan, an associate broker at Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc., to serve a four-year term on the Virginia Real Estate Board. Noonan, from Long & Foster's Tuckahoe office in Richmond, Virginia, became a Realtor in 1999. She is a member of the company's Chairman's Club and received a Distinguished Service Award by her peers. CONTINUED ON PAGE 34 Foreclosure Property Prices Rise as Inventory Shrinks related sales on a quarterly and yearly basis, with the annual increase marking the first rise in two years, according to RealtyTrac's second- quarter foreclosure sales report. The average price for foreclosure Prices went up for foreclosure- properties—including pre- foreclosure short sales and REOs— stood at $170,040 in Q2, a 6 percent increase from the previous quarter and a 7 percent hike from the second quarter of 2011. The annual increase is the first since the second quarter of 2010 and the biggest yearly gain since the fourth quarter of 2006. "The second-quarter sales numbers provide solid statistical evidence of what we've been hearing anecdotally from real estate agents, buyers, and investors over the past few months: There is a limited supply of available foreclosure inventory to choose from in many markets," said Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac VP. "Given this shortage of supply and the seasonally strong buyer demand in the second quarter, it's no surprise that the average foreclosure-related sales price increased both on a quarterly and annual basis." Nearly a quarter—23 percent—of all home sales in Q2 were either bank-owned properties or in some stage of foreclosure, compared to 22 percent in the previous quarter and 19 percent a year earlier. However, the actual number of foreclosure-related sales decreased to 224,429, down 12 percent from the previous quarter and down 22 percent compared to 12 months prior. Homes in foreclosure and REOs sold at an average discount of 32 percent below non-foreclosures, up from the 30 percent mark-down reported for both the previous quarter and the second quarter of 2011. Pre-foreclosure short sales are starting to catch up to REO sales, with bank-owned sales outnumbering short sales by just 9,833 in Q2, the smallest difference since the third quarter of 2007. CONTINUED ON PAGE 34 33

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