Safeguard Properties

FEMA Major Disaster Declaration – California Severe Storm and Flooding

Posted on by Safeguard

FEMA Alert
February 19, 2024  

FEMA has issued a Major Disaster Declaration for the state of California to supplement state, tribal and local recovery efforts in areas affected by a severe storm and flooding from January 21-23, 2024.  The following counties have been approved for assistance:

Individual Assistance:

  • San Diego

 

California Severe Storm and Flooding (DR-4758-CA)

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Major Disaster Declaration for California

Map of Affected Area

List of Affected Zip Codes

 

Additional Resources

FEMA’s web site

FEMA’s Disaster Declaration Process

Safeguard Properties Industry Alerts

HUD Moratorium on Foreclosure

VA’s Policy Regarding Natural Disasters

Freddie Mac Disaster Relief Policies

Fannie Mae’s Natural Disaster Relief Policies

City Council Approves Vacant-Building Ordinance: Owners of Empty Buildings Must Provide Plans or Face Fines

Posted on by Safeguard

One Community Update
February 15, 2024

Source: Yahoo! News

The Bakersfield City Council has taken another big step in an ongoing fight against blight within the city’s older urban core, putting some teeth in its efforts.

Bakersfield’s municipal government handed out $1 million to 22 local businesses through its Economic Opportunity Area Program just last month, assisting property owners whose buildings need repairs or upgrades in order to remain commercially viable.

Now, too few property owners whose vacant buildings have became attractive nuisances have demonstrated a real willingness to do something.

So much for the carrot. Behold the stick.

The city council approved a vacant nuisance registry ordinance Wednesday night that requires owners of unused, empty buildings  – both downtown and in Old Town Kern – to file paperwork with the city and place prominent signage that lists their name and contact information.

By a 5-2 vote, the council OK’d the ordinance calling on owners of properties left vacant for at least 30 days to submit a plan for the site. Failure to comply could mean fines or liens against those owners.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hearing Set on Vacant Property Maintenance

Posted on by Safeguard

One Community Update
February 15, 2024

Source: The Garden City News

During a hearing set for Thursday, March 7th, the Garden City Board of Trustees will discuss a proposed law aimed at requiring owners to maintain vacant and abandoned properties. As proposed the local law would also establish a registry of vacant or abandoned properties.

Trustee Charles Kelly noted that the March 7 hearing and the proposed new local law were created after reviews and input from the Village’s Legal Committee (consisting of Trustees Kelly and Ed Finneran).

“There were a number of complaints throughout the village about homes that remained vacant for extended periods of time, some with holes in the roof and some without windows. This has only affected about one-tenth of one percent of homes in Garden City, six to seven homes, but it created a significant issue for the people who live on those blocks and we wanted to give our municipal Building Department the necessary tools to address it….Obviously vacant houses with openings invite other danger to the neighborhood. These are the reasons we’re presenting the local law and scheduling the public hearing,” Trustee Kelly explained.

Mayor Mary Carter Flanagan said many members of the Board of Trustees have heard complaints from residents about vacant or abandoned houses nearby their own. “While it may not represent many homes, if those are the ones next door or across the street it is something the village wants to be able to address,” she commented at the meeting last Thursday night.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zimmerman’s Bill Giving Locals More Tools to Address Blighted Properties Advances

Posted on by Safeguard

One Community Update
February 16, 2024

Source: Yahoo! News

State Rep. Alex Zimmerman (R-North Vernon) said his bill to help local communities better address blighted properties recently advanced out of the Indiana House of Representatives unanimously.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, vacant or abandoned properties can have profound negative impacts on communities including hurting property values, attracting crime and nuisance pests, and presenting health and safety hazards.

To tackle these issues, Indiana’s Unsafe Building law gives cities, town and counties the ability to order the repair or demolition of unsafe buildings. However, Zimmerman said local communities struggle to address derelict or abandoned mobile homes and are seeking the tools to do so via legislation.

“Blighted properties cause issue after issue for communities until they’re either repaired or torn down, and we’ve seen prolonged cases where locals don’t have the legal tools needed to resolve issues involving mobile or manufactured homes,” Zimmerman said. “Our goal is to close a gap in state law so that locals can address these problems, which present risks and dangers to the inhabitants and those around them.”

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blight Fight Shifting to Rehab

Posted on by Safeguard

One Community Update
February 17, 2024

Source: altoonamirror.com

When Steve Karns of 21st Avenue in Fairview heard that the city planned to tear down a long-derelict house across from his home as part of its blighted property demolition program, he was encouraged.

When Karns subsequently learned that the city instead planned to renovate the house as part of a new program designed to get away from demolition and the creation of vacant lots that generate little tax revenue, Karns was skeptical because the house has deteriorated so badly and seemed too costly to fix.

Karns was still skeptical on Friday, but he became more receptive after learning that the city doesn’t necessarily need to be in the black after such projects, which involve acquisition, clearing the title, removing trash, hiring a contractor, supervising the renovation, then marketing and selling the property.

“I hope they can do it,” he said. “(But) we’ll see.”

After many months of discussion and preparatory efforts, the Redevelopment Authority/Land Bank board this week launched the program by advertising for contractor bids on the renovation of the house, which is on the corner of 21st Avenue and 14th Street.

There’s a pre-bid conference at 10 a.m. Feb. 28 at the house, and bids are due by 10 a.m. March 13 at the city’s Community Development Department in City Hall.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carroll City Council Alters Proposed Vacant Property Ordinance, Begins Approval Process Over

Posted on by Safeguard

One Community Update
February 17, 2024

Source: 1380kcim.com

The Carroll City Council made progress during the Monday, Feb. 12 meeting in implementing a vacant property ordinance intended to encourage owners to sell, lease, or otherwise utilize empty structures. The initial ordinance to be advanced by the council would have implemented a registration fee of $500 for functionally abandoned buildings, but it did not include provisions for vacant lots. Ward 3 Councilman Kyle Bauer, who was absent during the ordinance’s first reading last month, says he does not believe a $500 penalty is enough to encourage a property owner to take action.

Bauer recommended they return to the original language, which would put the vacant property penalty at one percent of the assessed valuation. At-Large Councilman LaVern Dirkx noted some properties that would be affected by the ordinance have very low valuations. Bauer and Ward 2 Councilman Jason Atherton suggested combining the two options.

While ordinances like this are common in other communities throughout Iowa, this would be the first for Carroll. Atherton says it is important residents understand the intent behind the ordinance.

The council favored making the changes, but City Attorney Dave Bruner advised they would need to begin the three-reading process over to follow proper procedure. The council voted unanimously to approve the amended ordinance. Two more readings are required before it would become active.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fannie Mae Recognizes 32 High-Performing Mortgage Servicers

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
February 12, 2024

Source: Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae announced its 2023 Servicer Total Achievement and Rewards™ (STAR™) Program results, recognizing 32 mortgage servicers for competency, capacity, and overall performance. For more than a decade, Fannie Mae’s STAR Program has awarded high-performing mortgage servicers for their loan volume and portfolio composition, and for demonstrating leading practices to improve the housing industry.

“Our servicing partners’ success is essential to achieving Fannie Mae’s goal of preserving homeownership and maintaining the safety and soundness of our business,” said Cyndi Danko, Senior Vice President and Single-Family Chief Credit Officer, Fannie Mae. “We’re proud to recognize our top-performing STAR Program servicers and their commitment to ensuring operational excellence, reducing credit loss, and continuously improving the overall homebuyer experience.”

Since 2011, Fannie Mae’s STAR Program has enabled broad and lasting improvements across the mortgage servicing industry by promoting servicing knowledge and excellence. The program continues to gain positive momentum and has seen sustained servicer improvement in both metric performance and operational assessment results year over year.

For the 2023 program year, mortgage servicers were evaluated for STAR Performer recognition in three categories: General Servicing, Solution Delivery, and Timeline Management based on the results of the Servicer Capability Framework and STAR Performance Scorecard.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Freddie Mac Announces 2023 SHARP Award Winners

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
February 15, 2024

Source: Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac announced the nine winners of its 2023 Servicer Honors and Rewards Program (SHARP)SM, which annually recognizes mortgage loan Servicers for quality servicing, risk management and sustainable homeownership resulting in superior portfolio performance. The winners represent outstanding customer service and positive efforts to prevent and alleviate loan delinquencies. Rankings are automatically determined based on performance relative to other Servicers in each of three rank groups.

“We’re proud to honor and highlight the outstanding work undertaken by our Servicers and this year’s SHARP winners,” said Bill Maguire, Freddie Mac’s Vice President of Single-Family Servicing Portfolio Management. “We thank all our Servicers for their steadfast dedication to homeowners in need of mortgage relief and their contribution to help Freddie Mac make sustainable homeownership a reality.”

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fannie “Real Estate Owned” Inventory Decreased Q4 2023

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
February 15, 2024

Source: Calculated Risk

Fannie reported results for Q4 2023. Here is some information on single-family Real Estate Owned (REOs).

Fannie Mae reported the number of REOs decreased to 8,403 at the end of Q4 2023, down 4% from 8,779 at the end of Q4 2022.

For Fannie, this is down 95% from the 166,787 peak number of REOs in Q3 2010.

This is well below the normal level of REOs for Fannie, and although REO levels might increase in 2024, there will not be a huge wave of foreclosures.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mortgage Delinquencies Increase in the Fourth Quarter of 2023

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
February 8, 2024

Source: Mortgage Bankers Association

The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.88 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey.

The delinquency rate was up 26 basis points from the third quarter of 2023 but down 8 basis points from one year ago. The historical average for the seasonally adjusted mortgage delinquency rate from 1979 through 2023 is 5.25 percent. Of particular note, FHA delinquencies were up 131 basis points.

The percentage of loans on which foreclosure actions were started in the fourth quarter remained unchanged at 0.14 percent.

“Mortgage delinquencies increased across all product types for the second consecutive quarter,” said Marina Walsh, CMB, MBA’s Vice President of Industry Analysis. “While the overall delinquency rate is still very low compared to the historical average, the pace of new loans entering delinquency picked up and some loans moved into later stages of delinquency. The resumption of student loan payments, robust personal spending, and rising balances on credit cards and other forms of consumer debt, paired with declining savings rates, are likely behind some borrowers falling behind at the end of 2023.”

Added Walsh, “The labor market is still quite resilient with the unemployment rate – strongly correlated with mortgage performance – remaining at 3.7 percent in January. Any weakening in employment conditions would likely lead to more borrowers falling behind on their payments in the coming quarters.”

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Alan Jaffa

Alan Jaffa is the chief executive officer for Safeguard, 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® finalist in 2013.

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Chief Operating Officer

Michael Greenbaum

Michael Greenbaum is the chief operating officer for Safeguard. Mike has been instrumental in aligning operations to become more efficient, effective, and compliant with our ever-changing industry requirements. Mike has a proven track record of excellence, partnership and collaboration at Safeguard. Under Mike’s leadership, all operational departments of Safeguard have reviewed, updated and enhanced their business processes to maximize efficiency and improve quality control.

Mike joined Safeguard in July 2010 as vice president of REO and has continued to take on additional duties and responsibilities within the organization, including the role of vice president of operations in 2013 and then COO in 2015.

Mike built his business career in supply-chain management, operations, finance and marketing. He has held senior management and executive positions with Erico, a manufacturing company in Solon, Ohio; Accel, Inc., a packaging company in Lewis Center, Ohio; and McMaster-Carr, an industrial supply company in Aurora, Ohio.

Before entering the business world, Mike served in the U.S. Army, Ordinance Branch, and specialized in supply chain management. He is a distinguished graduate of West Point (U.S. Military Academy), where he majored in quantitative economics.

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CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER

Sean Reddington

Sean Reddington is the new Chief Information Officer for Safeguard Properties LLC. Sean has over 15+ years of experience in Information Services Management with a strong focus on Product and Application Management. Sean is responsible for Safeguard’s technological direction, including planning, implementation and maintaining all operational systems

Sean has a proven record of accomplishment for increasing operational efficiencies, improving customer service levels, and implementing and maintaining IT initiatives to support successful business processes.  He has provided the vision and dedicated leadership for key technologies for Fortune 100 companies, and nationally recognized consulting firms including enterprise system architecture, security, desktop and database management systems. Sean possesses strong functional and system knowledge of information security, systems and software, contracts management, budgeting, human resources and legal and related regulatory compliance.

Sean joined Safeguard Properties LLC from RenPSG Inc. which is a nationally leading Philintropic Software Platform in the Fintech space. He oversaw the organization’s technological direction including planning, implementing and maintaining the best practices that align with all corporate functions. He also provided day-to-day technology operations, enterprise security, information risk and vulnerability management, audit and compliance, security awareness and training.

Prior to RenPSG, Sean worked for DMI Consulting as a Client Success Director where he guided the delivery in a multibillion-dollar Fortune 500 enterprise client account. He was responsible for all project deliveries in terms of quality, budget and timeliness and led the team to coordinate development and definition of project scope and limitations. Sean also worked for KPMG Consulting in their Microsoft Practice and Technicolor’s Ebusiness Division where he had responsibility for application development, maintenance, and support.

Sean is a graduate of Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Arts and received his Masters in International Business from Central Michigan University. He was also a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force prior to his career in the business world.

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General Counsel and Executive Vice President

Linda Erkkila, Esq.

Linda Erkkila is the general counsel and executive vice president for Safeguard and oversees the legal, human resources, training, and compliance departments. Linda’s responsibilities cover regulatory issues that impact Safeguard’s operations, risk mitigation, enterprise strategic planning, human resources and training initiatives, compliance, litigation and claims management, and 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. Her practice spans over 20 years, and Linda’s experience covers regulatory disclosure, corporate governance compliance, risk assessment, executive compensation, litigation management, and merger and acquisition activity. Her experience at a former Fortune 500 financial institution during the subprime crisis helped develop Linda’s pro-active approach to change management during periods of heightened regulatory scrutiny.

Linda previously served as vice president and attorney for National City Corporation, as securities and corporate governance counsel for Agilysys Inc., and as an associate at Thompson Hine LLP. She earned her JD at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. Linda holds a degree in economics from Miami University and an MBA. In 2017, Linda was named as both a “Woman of Influence” by HousingWire and as a “Leading Lady” by MReport.

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Chief Financial Officer

Joe Iafigliola

Joe Iafigliola is the Chief Financial Officer for Safeguard. Joe is responsible for the Control, Quality Assurance, Business Development, Accounting & Information Security departments, and is a Managing Director of SCG Partners, a middle-market private equity fund focused on diversifying and expanding Safeguard Properties’ business model into complimentary markets.

Joe has been in a wide variety of roles in finance, supply chain management, information systems development, and sales and marketing. His career includes senior positions with McMaster-Carr Supply Company, Newell/Rubbermaid, and Procter and Gamble.

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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AVP, High Risk and Investor Compliance

Steve Meyer

Steve Meyer is the assistant vice president of high risk and investor compliance for Safeguard. In this role, Steve is responsible for managing our clients’ conveyance processes, Safeguard’s investor compliance team and developing our working relationships with cities and municipalities around the country. He also works directly with our clients in our many outreach efforts and he represents Safeguard at a number of industry conferences each year.

Steve joined Safeguard in 1998 as manager over the hazard claims team. He was instrumental in the development and creation of policies, procedures and operating protocol. Under Steve’s leadership, the department became one of the largest within Safeguard. In 2002, he assumed responsibility for the newly-formed high risk department, once again building its success. Steve was promoted to director over these two areas in 2007, and he was promoted to assistant vice president in 2012.

Prior to joining Safeguard, Steve spent 10 years within the insurance industry, holding a number of positions including multi-line property adjuster, branch claims supervisor, and multi-line and subrogation/litigation supervisor. Steve is a graduate of Grove City College.

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AVP, Operations

Jennifer Jozity

Jennifer Jozity is the assistant vice president of operations, overseeing inspections, REO and property preservation for Safeguard. Jen ensures quality work is performed in the field and internally, to meet and exceed our clients’ expectations. Jen has demonstrated the ability to deliver consistent results in order audit and order management.  She will build upon these strengths in order to deliver this level of excellence in both REO and property preservation operations.

Jen joined Safeguard in 1997 and was promoted to director of inspections operations in 2009 and assistant vice president of inspections operations in 2012.

She graduated from Cleveland State University with a degree in business.

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AVP, Finance

Jennifer Anspach

Jennifer Anspach is the assistant vice president of finance for Safeguard. She is responsible for the company’s national workforce of approximately 1,000 employees. She manages recruitment strategies, employee relations, training, personnel policies, retention, payroll and benefits programs. Additionally, Jennifer has oversight of the accounts receivable and loss functions formerly within the accounting department.

Jennifer joined the company in April 2009 as a manager of accounting and finance and a year later was promoted to director. She was named AVP of human capital in 2014. Prior to joining Safeguard, she held several management positions at OfficeMax and InkStop in both operations and finance.

Jennifer is a graduate of Youngstown State University. She was named a Crain’s Cleveland Business Archer Award finalist for HR Executive of the Year in 2017.

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AVP, Application Architecture

Rick Moran

Rick Moran is the assistant vice president of application architecture for Safeguard. Rick is responsible for evolving the Safeguard IT systems. He leads the design of Safeguard’s enterprise application architecture. This includes Safeguard’s real-time integration with other systems, vendors and clients; the future upgrade roadmap for systems; and standards designed to meet availability, security, performance and goals.

Rick has been with Safeguard since 2011. During that time, he has led the system upgrades necessary to support Safeguard’s growth. In addition, Rick’s team has designed and implemented several innovative systems.

Prior to joining Safeguard, Rick was director of enterprise architecture at Revol Wireless, a privately held CDMA Wireless provider in Ohio and Indiana, and operated his own consulting firm providing services to the manufacturing, telecommunications, and energy sectors.

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AVP, Technology Infrastructure and Cloud Services

Steve Machovina

Steve Machovina is the assistant vice president of technology infrastructure and cloud services for Safeguard. He is responsible for the overall management and design of Safeguard’s hybrid cloud infrastructure. He manages all technology engineering staff who support data centers, telecommunications, network, servers, storage, service monitoring, and disaster recovery.

Steve joined Safeguard in November 2013 as director of information technology operations.

Prior to joining Safeguard, Steve was vice president of information technology at Revol Wireless, a privately held wireless provider in Ohio and Indiana. He also held management positions with Northcoast PCS and Corecomm Communications, and spent nine years as a Coast Guard officer and pilot.

Steve holds a BBA in management information systems from Kent State University in Ohio and an MBA from Wayne State University in Michigan.

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Assistant Vice president of Application Development

Steve Goberish

Steve Goberish, is the assistant vice president of application development for Safeguard. He is responsible for the maintenance and evolution of Safeguard’s vendor systems ensuring high-availability, security and scalability while advancing the vendor products’ capabilities and enhancing the vendor experience.

Prior to joining Safeguard, Steve was a senior technical architect and development manager at First American Title Insurance, a publicly held title insurance provider based in southern California, in addition to managing and developing applications in multiple sectors from insurance to VOIP.

Steve has a bachelor’s degree from Kent State University in Ohio.