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HUD October Housing Scorecard

On November 8, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released an update titled Obama Administration Releases October Housing Scorecard.

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION RELEASES OCTOBER HOUSING SCORECARD
Providence, Rhode Island housing market continues to show signs of significant improvement

WASHINGTON– The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury today released the October edition of the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard – a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. The latest data show important progress across many key indicators—as home prices, purchases of new homes, and sales of existing homes continue to show strong annual gains—although officials caution that the overall recovery remains fragile.The full Housing Scorecard is available online at www.hud.gov/scorecard.

“As indicated in the October housing scorecard, the Administration continues to work to stabilize the housing market and help responsible homeowners get back on their feet,” said HUD Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs Kurt Usowski. “With homeowners’ equity at its highest level since 2007 and home prices increasing steadily, it is clear that we are moving in the right direction.  As our housing market regains stability, it seems the time is ripe for private capital to begin taking a larger role in the housing finance system.”

“The Administration’s Making Home Affordable program continues to provide assistance to struggling homeowners, with more than 1.2 million homeowners receiving permanent modifications through HAMP,” said Tim Massad, Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability.  “In addition, the standards set through the program have helped change the industry and helped millions more avoid foreclosure.” The October Housing Scorecard features key data on the health of the housing market and the impact of the Administration’s foreclosure prevention programs, including:

  • The Administration’s foreclosure mitigation programs continue to provide relief for millions of homeowners as the recovery from the housing crisis continues. Over 1.8 million homeowner assistance actions have taken place through the Making Home Affordable Program, including more than 1.2 million permanent modifications through the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). The Administration’s programs continue to encourage improved standards and processes in the industry, with HOPE Now lenders offering families and individuals more than 3.8 million proprietary modifications through August.
  • Homeowners in HAMP continue to benefit from meaningful payment relief, increasing their long-term likelihood of avoiding foreclosure.  As of September, more than 1.2 million homeowners have received a permanent modification through HAMP, saving approximately $547 on their mortgage payments each month- an almost 40 percent savings from their previous payment. This represents a total estimated savings of $22.9 billion in monthly mortgage payments, since the inception of the program. In September, 72 percent of eligible non-GSE mortgages benefited from principal reduction with their HAMP modification. Homeowners currently in HAMP permanent modifications with some form of principal reduction have been granted an estimated $12.1 billion in principal reduction. View the Making Home Affordable Program Report with data through September 2013.

Also featured this month in the Administration’s Housing Scorecard is a regional spotlight on market strength in the Providence, Rhode Island area. Like many areas across the country, the economic and housing market conditions in the Providence area are improving, but the foreclosure crisis has taken its toll. The Administration’s broad approach to stabilize the housing market has been a real help to homeowners in Providence and the surrounding cities.

“As the housing market continues to strengthen nationwide, Providence is also showing signs of significant improvement,” said Usowski. “As this Regional Spotlight reports, from the launch of the Administration’s assistance programs in April 2009 through the end of August 2013, nearly 26,800 homeowners received mortgage assistance in the Providence metropolitan area.  This is a step in the right direction but we still have much to do to repair the damage caused by unsustainable lending in Providence prior to the crisis, and to help the continuing recovery.”

The Housing Scorecard Regional Spotlight features data on the health of the Providence housing market and impact of efforts to help homeowners at the local level including:

  • Economic and housing market conditions in the Providence MSA are improving.  The share of mortgages that remain underwater has dropped to 17.3 percent as of the second quarter of 2013, down from 21.5 percent a year earlier. Jobs in the MSA have been increasing at an average annual rate of 4,025, or 0.7 percent, from the first quarter of 2010 through the second quarter of 2013. The Administration’s broad approach to stabilize the housing market has contributed to the improvements as more than 15,600 homeowners received mortgage assistance in the Providence area between April 2009 and August 2013 through the HAMP and FHA loss mitigation programs. An additional 11,200 proprietary mortgage modifications were made during this time through HOPE Now Alliance servicers.  Furthermore, the City of Providence and the State of Rhode Island have benefitted from $25 million in funding from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, and $79 million from the Hardest Hit Fund program.
  • The National Mortgage Settlement is continuing to provide relief for those in Providence and throughout the state of Rhode Island.  Under the landmark National Mortgage Servicing Settlement, more than 2,000 Rhode Island homeowners had benefitted from over $150 million in consumer relief as of June 30, 2013.  1,182 of those borrowers, 56% of those helped, received an average of $72,586 in principal reduction on their first and second lien mortgages to help them stay in their homes.  In addition, 317 borrowers who were current on their mortgage but too far underwater for a traditional refinancing were able to refinance and save an average of $41,779 over the life of their loans. Nationwide, the settlement has provided more than $51 billion in consumer relief benefits to more than 640,000 families, including over $25 billion in first and second lien principal reduction for 319,559 borrowers.  That is in addition to the $2.5 billion in payments to participating states and $1.5 billion in direct payments to borrowers who were foreclosed upon between 2008 and 2011.
     

*Due to the government shutdown, the Obama Administration did not publish the September housing scorecard.

Please click here to view the update online.

 

About Safeguard 
Safeguard Properties is the largest mortgage field services company in the U.S. Founded in 1990 by Robert Klein and based in Valley View, Ohio, the company inspects and maintains defaulted and foreclosed properties for mortgage servicers, lenders,  and other financial institutions. Safeguard employs approximately 1,700 people, in addition to a network of thousands of contractors nationally. Website: www.safeguardproperties.com.

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CEO

Alan Jaffa

Alan Jaffa is the Chief Executive Officer for Safeguard Properties, steering the company as the mortgage field services industry leader. He also serves on the board of advisors for SCG Partners, a middle-market private equity fund focused on diversifying and expanding Safeguard Properties’ business model into complimentary markets.

Alan joined Safeguard in 1995, learning the business from the ground up. He was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2002, and was named CEO in May 2010. His hands-on experience has given him unique insights as a leader to innovate, improve and strengthen Safeguard’s processes to assure that the company adheres to the highest standards of quality and customer service.

Under Alan’s leadership, Safeguard has grown significantly with strategies that have included new and expanded services, technology investments that deliver higher quality and greater efficiency to clients, and strategic acquisitions. He takes a team approach to process improvement, involving staff at all levels of the organization to address issues, brainstorm solutions, and identify new and better ways to serve clients.

In 2008, Alan was recognized by Crain’s Cleveland Business in its annual “40-Under-40” profile of young leaders. He also was named a NEO Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award finalist in 2013.

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Esq., General Counsel and EVP

Linda Erkkila

Linda Erkkila is the General Counsel and Executive Vice President for Safeguard Properties, with oversight of legal, human resources, training, and compliance. Linda’s broad scope of oversight covers regulatory issues that impact Safeguard’s operations, risk mitigation, strategic planning, human resources and training initiatives, compliance, insurance, litigation and claims management, and counsel related to mergers, acquisition and joint ventures.

Linda assures that Safeguard’s strategic initiatives align with its resources, leverage opportunities across the company, and contemplate compliance mandates. She has practiced law for 25 years and her experience, both as outside and in-house counsel, covers a wide range of corporate matters, including regulatory disclosure, corporate governance compliance, risk assessment, compensation and benefits, litigation management, and mergers and acquisitions.

Linda earned her JD at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. She holds a degree in economics from Miami University and an MBA. Linda was previously named as both a “Woman of Influence” by HousingWire and as a “Leading Lady” by MReport.

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COO

Michael Greenbaum

Michael Greenbaum is the Chief Operating Officer of Safeguard Properties, where he has played a pivotal role since joining the company in July 2010. Initially brought on as Vice President of REO, Mike’s exceptional leadership and strategic vision quickly propelled him to Vice President of Operations in 2013, and ultimately to COO in 2015. Over his 14-year tenure at Safeguard, Mike has been instrumental in driving change and fostering innovation within the Property Preservation sector, consistently delivering excellence and becoming a trusted partner to clients and investors.

A distinguished graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Mike earned a degree in Quantitative Economics. Following his graduation, he served in the U.S. Army’s Ordnance Branch, where he specialized in supply chain management. Before his tenure at Safeguard, Mike honed his expertise by managing global supply chains for 13 years, leveraging his military and civilian experience to lead with precision and efficacy.

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CFO

Joe Iafigliola

Joe Iafigliola is the Chief Financial Officer for Safeguard Properties. Joe is responsible for the Control, Quality Assurance, Business Development, Marketing, Accounting, and Information Security departments. At the core of his responsibilities is the drive to ensure that Safeguard’s focus remains rooted in Customer Service = Resolution. Through his executive leadership role, he actively supports SGPNOW.com, an on-demand service geared towards real estate and property management professionals as well as individual home owners in need of inspection and property preservation services. Joe is also an integral force behind Compliance Connections, a branch of Safeguard Properties that allows code enforcement professionals to report violations at properties that can then be addressed by the Safeguard vendor network. Compliance Connections also researches and shares vacant property ordinance information with Safeguard clients.

Joe has an MBA from The Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University, is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA), and holds a bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University’s Honors Accounting program.

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Business Development

Carrie Tackett

Business Development Safeguard Properties