2024 – Page 14

ServiceLink’s Antonio Little promoted to vice president, two national sales executives hired

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ServiceLink, the nation’s premier provider of tech-enabled services for all phases of the mortgage lifecycle, is pleased to announce the promotion of Antonio Little to vice president, national sales manager in the origination division, where he will oversee account executives across the country. Known for his warm personality and ability to gain trust, Little is a sought-after leader with 24 years of industry experience, eight of which he’s spent at ServiceLink. He has been a part of the Fidelity National Financial family of companies for nearly 10 years. Little is a customer-centric visionary, with a background in operations, training, business development and management across nearly all channels of the mortgageservices industry. He spent the bulk of his career in management, focusing on strategy and implementation of new processes, with a stint as chief revenue officer at an IT consulting firm. Over the course of his career, Little has helped companies expand their operations throughout the United States and into both Canada and Australia. He has an expansive knowledge of the industry and has spent most of his career working with top-tier clients, always striving to marry ServiceLink’s rich skillset and expertise with the needs of industry clients. ServiceLink also is excited to welcome two national sales executives to its default and origination divisions. They will each be responsible for driving client growth and new business development in their respective divisions. Raquel Pasala brings more than 15 years’ experience in the mortgage servicing and financing space to ServiceLink’s default division, where she will serve as vice president, national sales executive. She is known for her meticulous attention to detail, adaptability, dedication and a comprehensive understanding of financial processes. Pasala also has extensive experience in real estate, law, origination, insurance and client relations, along with a deep knowledge of property preservation and the single-family rental market. Pasala comes to ServiceLink after a stint at First Allegiance, where she served as senior vice president in strategy and business relations. Kevin Ziolkowski, who joins ServiceLink’s origination division as a national sales executive, brings decades of industry experience, with a background in sales, operations, insurance, account management and technology. Ziolkowski has a proven track record of success in developing and implementing complex initiatives to drive improved customer satisfaction and growth. He comes to ServiceLink from Magellan Solutions USA, where he was director of business development. Previously, Ziolkowski spent nearly a decade as vice president of sales at Black Knight, where he focused on data and analytics partnerships nationwide. He also helped create a startup and tech-forward organization by leading sales at Mortgage Harmony, now Finofr. He has extensive experience in the mortgage insurance sector, where he created and grew strategic partnerships and has received multiple top sales performer awards throughout his mortgage career.

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Guidewire announced the availability of critical data and maps detailing hurricane risk at the national, state, and local levels in the United States. This service leverages HazardHub’s more than 1,000 data points and risk scores for climate risks and extreme weather events. Top States for Hurricane Risk The top ten states for hurricane risk, based on the percentage of properties rated as “D” (high) or “F” (very high) risk for hurricane damage in the Guidewire HazardHub Hurricane Risk Model, are: 1. Florida2. Louisiana3. South Carolina4. Texas5. Mississippi6. North Carolina7. Delaware8. Georgia9. Alabama10. Virginia These states face the highest hurricane risk, factoring in the likelihood of Category 1 or greater hurricanes, proximity to the coast, and the frequency of tropical and subtropical events, among other factors. States at Risk of Storm Surge The percentage of housing units at risk of storm surge flooding in high-risk states for hurricanes, as indicated by an “F” rating in the HazardHub SurgeMax Storm Surge Flooding Model, are: The HazardHub SurgeMax Score is a metric developed by HazardHub to measure the risk of storm surge flooding for any given location. The score is designed to help insurers, underwriters, and others assess and manage the risk associated with storm surge events, which can be a significant threat in coastal areas, particularly during severe hurricanes. The SurgeMax Score takes into account various factors, including historical NOAA storm surge data, topography, distance from the coast, and other relevant geographical and environmental data to estimate the potential severity of storm surge impacts. In Florida, the state at most significant risk for hurricane events, nearly 1 out of 3 homes, or 3 million homes, are susceptible to storm surge flooding from hurricanes, making it one of the most vulnerable states to flooding from hurricanes. In Louisiana, the state with the second greatest hurricane risk, approximately 52% of homes, or 910,000 homes, are susceptible to hurricane storm surge flooding. Louisiana is highly prone to hurricanes and storm surge flooding due to its location along the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, its low elevation and flat terrain, and the ongoing loss of protective wetlands and barrier islands. The Mississippi River Delta’s subsidence further exacerbates the state’s vulnerability, making it one of the most at-risk areas for flooding during hurricanes. “Understanding hurricane risk is vital for insurers and property owners alike, as it informs their coverage options, emergency plans, and mitigation strategies,” said Christina Hupy, Vice President, HazardHub at Guidewire. “HazardHub helps insurers better understand a property’s climate and hurricane risks at the individual address level, enabling more accurate underwriting of that risk. With this technology, property owners, meanwhile, are also better informed to be able to mitigate their risks and prepare for these events.” The HazardHub Hurricane Risk Scores and other detailed data and risk scores are accessible to insurers through Guidewire apps, including PolicyCenter and InsuranceNow, and via the HazardHub API. Consumers interested in learning about their home’s risks can visit freehomerisk.com. About Guidewire Guidewire is the platform P&C insurers trust to engage, innovate, and grow efficiently. More than 570 insurers in 42 countries, from new ventures to the largest and most complex in the world, rely on Guidewire products. With core systems leveraging data and analytics, digital, and artificial intelligence, Guidewire defines cloud platform excellence for P&C insurers. We are proud of our unparalleled implementation record, with 1,700+ successful projects supported by the industry’s largest R&D team and SI partner ecosystem. Our marketplace represents the largest solution partner community in P&C, where customers can access hundreds of applications to accelerate integration, localization, and innovation. For more information, please visit www.guidewire.com

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Foreclosure Starts Decrease 5.1 Percent from Last Month; Completed Foreclosures Decrease 12 Percent from Last Month ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property, and real estate data and analytics, released its August 2024 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows there were a total of 30,227 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions — down 5.3 percent from a month ago and down 11 percent from a year ago. “Foreclosure activity has remained relatively steady in recent months, with both foreclosure starts and completed foreclosures declining in August,” said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM. “While overall activity is significantly lower than the peaks seen during the 2008 financial crisis, when filings exceeded 300,000 per month, the current economic environment, coupled with rising interest rates and affordability challenges, suggests a continued focus on potential housing market instability.” Nevada, Florida, and Illinois post highest foreclosure ratesNationwide, one in every 4,662 housing units had a foreclosure filing in August 2024. States with the highest foreclosure rates were Nevada (one in every 2,473 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Florida (one in every 2,605 housing units); Illinois (one in every 2,837 housing units); South Carolina (one in every 2,877 housing units); and New Jersey (one in every 3,227 housing units). Among the 224 metropolitan statistical areas with a population of at least 200,000, those with the highest foreclosure rates in August 2024 were Lakeland, FL (one in every 1,245 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Chico, CA (one in every 1,526 housing units); Columbia, SC (one in every 1,796 housing units); Bakersfield, CA (one in every 1,972 housing units); and Las Vegas, NV (one in every 2,016 housing units). Other than Las Vegas, those metropolitan areas with a population greater than 1 million with the worst foreclosure rates in August 2024 were: Riverside, CA (one in every 2,423 housing units); Miami, FL (one in every 2,429 housing units); Chicago, IL (one in every 2,450 housing units); and Orlando, FL (one in every 2,595 housing units). Greatest numbers of foreclosure starts in Florida, California, and TexasLenders started the foreclosure process on 20,747 U.S. properties in August 2024, down 5.1 percent from last month and down 9.4 percent from a year ago. States that had the greatest number of foreclosure starts in August 2024 included: Florida (2,668 foreclosure starts); California (2,443 foreclosure starts); Texas (1,857 foreclosure starts); New York (1,328 foreclosure starts); and Illinois (1,208 foreclosure starts). Those major metropolitan areas with a population greater than 1 million that had the greatest number of foreclosure starts in August 2024 included: New York, NY (1,332 foreclosure starts); Chicago, IL (1,069 foreclosure starts); Miami, FL (743 foreclosure starts); Los Angeles, CA (675 foreclosure starts); and Houston, TX (507 foreclosure starts). Foreclosure completion numbers decrease from last month and last yearLenders repossessed 2,889 U.S. properties through completed foreclosures (REOs) in August 2024, down 12.0 percent from last month and down 13.9 percent from a year ago. States that had the greatest number of REOs in August 2024, included: Pennsylvania (266 REOs); California (229 REOs); Illinois (224 REOs); Michigan (206 REOs); and Florida (202 REOs). Those major metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) with a population greater than 1 million that saw the greatest number of REOs in August 2024 included: Chicago, IL (154 REOs); Detroit, MI (114 REOs); New York, NY (112 REOs); Pittsburgh, PA (100 REOs); and Baltimore, MD (56 REOs). Media Contact:Megan Huntmegan.hunt@attomdata.com SOURCE ATTOM

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Competition among buyers is likely to extend into the fall thanks to improved affordability Lower mortgage rates and rising inventory are giving home buyers a window of opportunity at an unusual time of year, according to the latest market report from Zillow®. Affordability has improved substantially for home buyers, and competition among them could extend into the fall instead of fading away as is typical at this time of year. “Late summer may be an opportunity for buyers who have been waiting in the wings for a monthly mortgage payment they can qualify for,” said Skylar Olsen, Zillow chief economist. “Buyers have more options to choose from for two reasons. For one, it’s easier to qualify for more of the homes on the market now that mortgage rates are a bit lower. Beyond that, more inventory is becoming available — enough to improve buyer negotiating power. Attractive properties in hot markets are still selling quickly, but some metros — or neighborhoods within them — have flipped further in favor of buyers.” Mortgage rate declines have made buying a home roughly affordable again at the national level (meaning monthly payments generally take less than one-third of median household income), assuming a buyer puts 20% down and before taxes and insurance are accounted for. Nationwide, the monthly payment on a typical home purchase has fallen by more than $100 since a peak in May. That drop is more than $300 a month in the ultraexpensive San Francisco metro area. Beyond lower costs, a number of metrics are moving in buyers’ favor. The Zillow market heat index shifted from being in favor of sellers into neutral territory in July. For the past two years, sellers held their edge nationally until October. Homes are taking longer to sell than in recent history, but shorter than in pre-pandemic times. Homes that sold in August took 20 days to go pending, two more than in July, but about six days faster than at this time of year before the pandemic. And while inventory growth has slowed, nearly 1.18 million homes are on the market, more than any month since September 2020. Lower rates could stall or slow a normal autumn cooldown, because right now buyers are more likely to be motivated by lower rates than sellers are. Some signals are already pointing to an altered trajectory in the housing market. The share of listings on Zillow with a price cut ticked down from July to August, reversing an upward trend of rising every month since March. Just under 26% of homes on the market had a price cut in August. That’s relatively high for this time of year, but not a record, as seen in recent months. Opportunities for buyers Opportunities for sellers SOURCE Zillow

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PropStream Announces New AVM & AI Innovations PropStream, the leading real estate data provider, announced another enhancement in its lineup of updates powered by machine learning AI—AI Property Values and AVM (Automated Valuation Model). By upgrading the Estimated Value function (AVM) powered by machine learning, PropStream can provide the most up-to-date property values by pulling them from several data sources and updating them with its machine learning AI as soon as they’re available. “PropStream is committed to transforming how real estate data is collected and used with the integration of new predictive AI features,” said PropStream President Brian Tepfer. “Our first release is a new AVM powered by machine learning—giving our users an edge in their property research and comping to collect the most precise, diverse, and dynamic property valuations – empowering them to make educated decisions.” From adding the Demographics datasets to now incorporating a cutting-edge machine learning AVM, PropStream is leading the charge in optimizing real estate data for practical, modern use. PropStream has more exciting updates in the works, so stay tuned! Also, remember to activate your 7-day free PropStream trial to see the new AVM in action. To learn more about this update and how the AI model is used, check out this blog. About PropStream: PropStream, a Stewart Company, is the leader in multi-sourced data aggregation, allowing real estate professionals to get the most targeted leads. In business since 2006, PropStream has data for over 155 million properties nationwide. Upcoming enhancements utilize the power of Predictive Real Estate Data to pave the way for new features, proprietary AI predictive analytics, and hundreds of filtering combinations (including 20 Lead Lists). PropStream helps real estate professionals find the best off-market leads and market to them in the least amount of time. PropStream was acquired by Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC) in November 2021 and has been named a HousingWire Tech 100 Honoree four years in a row since 2021. Contacts PropStream Marketing1-877-204-9040

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Two Bright Spots: Almost Two in Three Expect Mortgage Rates to Drop; More Than Four in Ten Say 5% Mortgage Rates Would Compel Them to Buy Nearly half of prospective home buyers are struggling to pay basic home costs and say home insurance affordability is a major factor in where they decide to move, according to the results of a survey of 1,818 US adults across the country released today. The survey was conducted by Mphasis Digital Risk, a leading provider of origination, diligence, quality control and artificial intelligence services for the mortgage, consumer lending and financial services industries. Despite their concerns regarding insurance and costs associated with housing, Americans are more positive regarding the direction of interest rates, and what they call their “magic number” – representing the mortgage rate that would compel them to make a home purchase. More than four in ten (42%) cited a 5% rate as the “sweet spot”; more than one in four (27%) said 4%, and one in five (20%) said the magic number was 6%. In addition, Americans are generally optimistic about the general direction of the mortgage market. Almost two out of three people (64%) say they are either “very encouraged” (21%) or “somewhat encouraged” (43%) that mortgage rates will be dropping soon. However, a significant number of respondents, 40%, said they would put off buying a home until after November’s presidential election is settled. The largest share of respondents, 30%, blamed “inflation” as a driving factor of high mortgage rates; 23% blamed the current president, while 13% blamed the Federal Reserve. The surprisingly large number of people (48%) challenged by home-related expenses, including maintenance, utilities, taxes and fees, is underscored by 39% of those surveyed who said they have seen a “significant increase” in their monthly payments (which include taxes and insurance). In addition, more than one in four (27%) Americans, across all income groups including mass affluent and above, said they have been forced to arrange a payment plan or other arrangement to assist in making their monthly payments. Concerns about the fast-rising costs of home insurance, driven by increasingly common extreme weather events, is another major factor on the minds of would-be home buyers: A full 47% say home insurance costs will have “a lot” (18%) or “a good deal” (29%) of influence in where they decide to move. One-quarter (25%) said they are considering moving due to extreme weather in their area, and 26% said they knew of someone who was forced to move because of home insurance costs. “Many prospective buyers started questioning the American dream of home ownership as inflation brough mortgage rates to a cyclical peak of 8% in October 2023, but now rates are down more than 1.5% from this peak,” said Jeff Taylor, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Mphasis Digital Risk. “We’re now getting closer to homebuyers’ comfort zone of low-6%, high-5% rates, and September’s anticipated Fed cuts should help buyer sentiment. This is why industry estimates call for a robust 2025 with $2 trillion in expected mortgage originations.” Just under 30% of respondents are considering a home purchase in the second half of the year. But buyers are feeling the effects of a seller’s market as existing home supply drives prices upward, with more than 20% saying they’ve been searching for more than two years and finding it, “a bit depressing,” and 17% reporting that, “It’s often on my mind and makes me feel sad and angry.” About Mphasis Digital Risk, LLCMphasis Digital Risk, LLC is a leading end-to-end origination, risk, compliance, and technology services company that offers differentiated solutions to the mortgage, consumer lending, and other regulated industries. The individual talents of Digital Risk’s thousands of analysts are amplified by the company’s proprietary technology and advanced analytics performed using the Making Mortgages Safe™ solutions suite. Mphasis Digital Risk, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mphasis Ltd. To learn more, visit www.DigitalRisk.com. SOURCE Mphasis