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IN THE NEWS Two Maryland Title Companies Merge to Expand REO Services Title Corporation and American Trust Title, announced they have combined forces to create an REO powerhouse. The new entity will be called Crown Title Corporation. The newly merged company will employ 30 title professionals and provide REO services to clients nationwide. Prior to the team-up, American Trust Two Maryland title companies, Crown Title worked exclusively with the Towson- based law firm Cohn, Goldberg & Deutsch. As part of the strategic partnership, the new Crown Title Corporation will act as the operating entity for the firm's REO sales. "We are pleased to be part of the Cohn, IN THE NEWS Completed Foreclosures in Bay State Drop 40% completed the least number of foreclosures since February 2011, according to a report from the Warren Group. During the month, 566 foreclosures were In August, lenders in Massachusetts completed, marking a 40 percent decrease from August 2011, when 947 foreclosures were finalized. From January to August, 5,975 foreclosure deeds were filed, an increase of 8.4 percent compared to 5,511 deeds re- corded over the same period last year. Foreclosure petitions saw their numbers Goldberg & Deutsch family, and look forward to expanding and strengthening our REO division and feel that our clients will benefit from the combined expertise of both companies," said David Thurston, president of Crown Title Corporation. Massachusetts rank: 29 90+ Day 3.39% 3.34% 1.6% 90+ Day 5.41% year ago 5.21% percent point change 3.9% 19.5% Top Core-Based Statistical Area PITTSFIELD, MA 90+ Day 3.87% year ago 3.47% percent point change 11.7% 0.1% note: The 90+ Day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are 90- plus days delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the August 2012 foreclosure rate. All figures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate reflects preliminary August 2012 figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of Lender Processing Services. 3.76% Delinquency Rate august 2012 3.76% Foreclosure Rate 3.31% Delinquency Rate Foreclosure Rate august 2012 2.63% year ago 2.42% percent point change 8.6% Top County HAMPDEN COUNTY Delinquency Rate august 2012 3.96% Foreclosure Rate Unemployment Rate 6.3% 7.4% -14.9% Massachusetts, contracted with LenderLive Network Inc. to handle its loan operations functions. LenderLive is a Glendale, Colorado- Rockland Trust, of Rockland, customer service. Partnering with a company that values this aspect of business as much as we do was paramount." Rockland Trust is a full-service com- mercial bank offering a range of residential home mortgage programs in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. Massachusetts' Home and Condo Sales Rise in August single-family homes and condominiums in Massachusetts posted an annual increase in August. Prices also rose, marking the sev- enth consecutive month of yearly price gains. In August, 5,118 single-family homes The Warren Group reported that sales of go up year-over-year by 4.2 percent, rising to 1,456 from 1,397 in August 2011. Fore- closure petitions year-to-date numbered 12,079 as of August, up 46 percent from the same period last year. Petitions have been trending upward every month this year except in July. The Warren Group also tracked the num- ber of auction announcements and reported 1,084 during August, a yearly decrease of 18 percent. Year-to-date, auction announce- ments are down 9.2 percent compared to the same period last year. Rockland Trust Selects LenderLive for Loan Fulfillment Services based mortgage services provider. Rockland Trust chose LenderLive for its origination services division, which will provide the company with private-label mortgage fulfill- ment solutions that are SAFE Act-compliant and flexible. Ed Jankowski, chief technology and operations officer for Rockland Trust, said, "LenderLive has the track record we were searching for in a service provider. At Rockland Trust, customer service is our top priority. With their deep resources and years of experience in mortgage process- ing, LenderLive will allow us to focus on our commitment to providing exceptional 90 sold in the Bay State, a 20 percent increase from August 2011. Year-to-date, sales stood at 31,733, an increase of 24 percent from the same period a year ago. Condominium sales also showed signifi- cant gains, jumping 40 percent to 2,432 in August, up from 1,736 a year earlier. Year-to- date, condo sales totaled 13,040, up nearly 28 percent from the same period last year. The median price of single-family homes was $310,000 in August, up 1.6 percent year- over-year. Year-to-date, prices were down 1.7 percent from the same period last year. The median condo price registered a 4.3 percent decline in August, falling to $279,000 from $291,513 a year earlier. The year-to-date median price for condos rose nearly 2 percent to $279,900. "One more month of strong home sales confirm speculation that the housing market recovery is under way," said Timothy M. Warren Jr., CEO of the Warren Group. "Even though we are comparing to a slow August last year, the consistent sales volume of 4,000 to 5,000 in the past few months is a promising indicator." KNOW THIS Home prices in the Bay State are forecast by Barclays' analysts to increase just 0.5% in 2012 but rise 3.2% in 2013 and 5.0% in 2014.

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