Boots on the Ground

This is the third in a series of four articles from RPR. Read the first and second articles.

The REALTOR®'s role in the eyes of the mortgage industry is very important. As the "boots on the ground" resource, the mortgage market has expectations that the REALTOR® is well versed in their market. They are aware of market trends, have insight into the condition of a property, are knowledgeable in selecting appropriate comparable properties (comps) which can minimize risk, and are an ally when selling REO (real estate owned) or short sales transactions.

In today's housing market, it's widely believed that many of the industry's transaction processes could use improvement. Short sales are anything but short, pricing REOs is tricky, and even in traditional home sale transactions, the appraisal may not always be as expected when given differing perspectives of the local market trends. By leveraging the partnership between the REALTOR® and the mortgage industry and utilizing combined analytical capabilities that understand the data, there is an opportunity to drive significant improvement. Through best-in-class BPO training, powerful appraisal tools, and the use of RPR's REALTOR® Valuation Model® (RVM®), REALTORS® have the potential to shorten the timeline of some transactions which can lower costs. This new, improved process can be performed at multiple points in the mortgage lifecycle to help all housing market participants keep up with rapidly changing dynamics and property conditions.