Nevada instituted a new law criminalizing faulty foreclosures. Banks are taking a big breather there, resulting in the foreclosure backlog doubling in the last 8 months. Massachusetts, a non-judicial state, saw a similar jump after new state foreclosure legislation, and California’s Homeowner Bill of Rights, modeled on Nevada’s law, went into effect in January 2013, so it too will likely see a slowdown in the clearing of distressed loans.

It all brings into question the recent jump in home values, which is being caused by a huge drop in supply of distressed homes.

(Read More: Taking The Real Estate Recovery Local)

Sale prices of homes jumped nearly 10 percent in January, according to CoreLogic. Even with the price surge, inventories continue to drop dramatically across the nation, perhaps because would-be sellers want to see just how high prices will go before testing the waters.

Housing bulls seem unconcerned about the so-called “shadow inventory” of distressed properties, but perhaps they should be. Of the loans that were in foreclosure in January 2012, 42 percent still are, according to LPS. Just 33 percent moved to bank repossession or other forms of liquidation.

In addition, while new mortgage delinquencies are falling in non-judicial states, they are increasing almost 20 percent in judicial states, according to Lender Processing Services.

“The line that we would draw goes through home prices,” Blecher speculated. “If those back logs are having any impact on home prices that could drive new problem loans as well.”

(Read More: Pending Home Sales Soar Despite Rough Winter)

Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100533234

“We are excited to have Mark rejoin the Real Estate Department”

His practice includes leasing, acquisitions and dispositions, financing,
development, and joint venture formation, as well as loan enforcement
and loan foreclosures. Mark’s realty property acquisitions and
dispositions practice includes complex purchase, sale and 1031 exchange
transactions. His leasing practice includes the representation of both
landlords and tenants in leases of office, industrial and retail space
located throughout the United States. His financing experience includes
representing borrowers and lenders on the origination of real property
secured loans and mezzanine loans and loan servicing matters.

Mark has extensive experience in the restructuring of distressed loans,
enforcing defaulted loans and the California foreclosure process. He has
also represented both developers and investors in the structuring and
formation of complex joint ventures (using LLC’s, partnerships, and TIC
structures) as well as the negotiation and preparation of development
agreements, construction contracts, completion guaranties, CCRs,
easements, and management agreements.

“We are excited to have Mark rejoin the Real Estate Department,” said
David Osias, Managing Partner of Allen Matkins. “Mark’s expertise,
energy and commitment to his clients makes him an easy fit with our
other San Francisco based real estate attorneys. His reputation and
stature in the real estate community and his pragmatic, results oriented
approach to practicing real estate law will provide great value to his
clients and existing clients of Allen Matkins.”

Prior to rejoining Allen Matkins, Mark was a partner at Seyfarth Shaw
from 2006 through 2012. Before his first stint at Allen Matkins from
2004-2006, he worked for Pillsbury Winthrop for five years.

Mark received his Masters of Law in Real Property Development from the
University of Miami, his Juris Doctorate from the University of Oregon
School of Law, and his Bachelor of Science, with honors from the
University of California, Santa Barbara. He is a board member of San
Francisco Bay Area NAIOP and serves on both local and national
legislative committees for NAIOP advocating for the interests of real
estate owners and operators.

ABOUT ALLEN MATKINS

Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory Natsis LLP, founded in 1977, is a
California-based law firm with approximately 220 attorneys with offices
in four major metropolitan areas of California: Los Angeles, Orange
County, San Francisco and San Diego. The firm’s core specialties include
real estate, real estate finance, construction, land use, natural
resources, environmental, corporate and securities, intellectual
property, joint ventures, taxation, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights,
employment and labor law, and dispute resolution and litigation in all
these matters. For 35 years, Allen Matkins has helped clients turn
opportunity and challenge into success by providing practical advice,
innovative solutions and valuable business opportunities.

Article source: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120620006770/en/Mark-Mengelberg-Joins-Allen-Matkins%E2%80%99-San-Francisco

Let me preface with an apology for the huge supply of numbers in this post, but if you can make it through them all, I think you will get the picture I’m drawing here.

The so-called “shadow inventory” of residential properties is falling, according to a new report from CoreLogic.

This is the number of homes with seriously delinquent loans (90+ days), loans in the foreclosure process and bank-owned homes which are not yet listed for sale.

The supply as of April 2011 declined to 1.7 million units, representing a five months’ supply. This is down from 1.9 million units, also a five months’ supply, from a year ago.

“The decline was due to fewer new delinquencies and the high level of distressed sales, which helped reduce the number of outstanding distressed loans,” according to the report.

Good news, no? Wait. There’s more:

“In addition to the current shadow inventory, there are 2 million current negative equity loans that are more than 50 percent or $150,000 “upside down.” These current but underwater loans have increased risk of entering the shadow inventory if the owners’ ability to pay is impaired while significantly underwater.”

And then there’s this other report from Lender Processing Services (LPS), which also reports a drop in newly delinquent loans, but gives the actual, mind-numbing numbers of loans in trouble:

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Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/43495174?__source=RSS*blog*&par=RSS