Uvestor Kicks Off REIA Coverage, Foreclosures Continue

Marketing & Technology Conference Begins Today
The National REIA Marketing & Technology Conference begins today at the Founders Inn & Spa in Virginia Beach, VA. Uvestor.com will be in attendance in a partnership role, there to shoot video of the event for a later documentary, keep attendees abreast of event happenings via blog and twitter, report news back to those who could not make it to the conference, and conduct interviews with conference attendees and presenters.

Is Foreclosure Mediation Lip Service?
Yesterday, it was widely reported that the nonprofit National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) has failed to find any evidence that substantial loan modification is happening anywhere. The group essentially explained that the programs were failing across the board due to a lack of incentive for the banks to participate. This statement applies not only to the federal initiatives but to state initiatives, as well.

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner (at least, publicly) is of a different opinion entirely, as he said yesterday that he expects 500,000 homeowners to achieve some level of modification in the next month. But refinancing is not always the final solution, either. According to Fannie Mae, about 60% of the homeowners who received modifications in the last quarter of 2008 fell behind again.

Uvestor Opportunity:
Have you ever sat in a doctor’s office or dentist’s chair, seen the needle, and thought to yourself, “Okay, just get it over with”? Well, some analysts are arguing this point persuasively by now regarding the foreclosure crisis. Banks knew all along that dragging heels and digging in was the best strategy to hang on to the most money. And by and large, these are institutions that need all the black ink they can get to offset the fountain of red ink that has hit their pages in recent years.

Plan for more foreclosures in the coming months. Some borrowers are walking away. Others seem to be unanimously too far gone to save. And still others will fall through the cracks or hit institutional roadblocks. This continuing trend will affect prices and supply, further sludging up the recovery but also creating deals along the way.