The Federation of Certified REO Experts (FORCE)met Tuesday at the annual FORCE Rally within the 2017 Five Star Conference and Expo. Ed Delgado, Five Star President and CEO, spoke to the state of the industry, which he says is headed toward a microbubble.
“The market is about to change and we need to be ready,” said Delgado. “REO is going to increase in 2018 as we see more fractures in the market—how much is determined by location and how big the fall off in price points will be.”
According to Delgado, the real estate market is white hot while demand is still strong. These factors are driving price points, appreciation, and values way up. However, 5 to 10 percent spikes in appreciation along with price points that are overvalued by 15 to 20 percent aren’t a new observation—it’s something he witnessed in 2007 and 2008.
“This is what we think will happen in the next year: Regional or microbubbles will start to burst—pay attention to Denver, Dallas, San Antonio, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and San Francisco,” said Delgado. “Delinquency will rise and foreclosures will increase.”
Additionally, after being devastated by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma respectively, Delgado said Houston has an understated delinquency population by as much as 300,000 while Florida homeowner insurance deductibles will create long-term hardships putting a greater financial strain on homeowners.
Delgado also spoke at the American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC) meeting Monday, detailing that though the group is working toward a better mortgage industry, there is still more work to be done.
In 2016, Judy Dominguez of Cherry Creek Mortgage, a residential lender based out of Greenwood, Colorado, had her spousal health insurance revoked and was saddled with about $40,000 in medical bills after her wife had a heart attack. Though they have a recognized marriage, the bank cited the decision to revoke as recognizing marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
“Every once in a while when discussing the AMDC I’ll have a well-meaning executive ask ‘what’s the point’,” said Delgado. “Ensuring that stories like this don’t happen again is the point.”
Delgado said that discussions are important and should be had, but anyone can pull professionals together so they can say the right things and feel good about themselves. Once the steps are defined, they must be walked out.
“It is up to each of us to pursue the change that we want to see with passion,” Delgado said. “The stakes are simply too high for us to give anything but our best.”
