Servicing

Allstate Appraisal, L.P., announced the hiring of new national chief residential appraiser Scott Sparks to oversee business development, client relationship management, and the company's Residential Quality Control Divisions.

In Florida, Scott French has joined Auction Services International (ASI) as president.

CoreLogic's Home Price Index (HPI) jumped 11.9 percent year-over-year in June, the company reported Tuesday. June's data falls short of the 13.2 percent growth projected in CoreLogic's Pending HPI for June. Month-over-month, June's index was up 1.9 percent from May, a full percentage point short of predictions (partially explained by a revision in May data). Looking ahead, the Pending HPI for July indicates home prices (including distressed sales) are expected to rise 12.5 percent yearly.

The number of job openings rose 29,000 in June to the highest level in five years, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). At the same time, the number of unemployed individuals per job opening dipped below 3 (to 2.99) for the first time since October 2008. The number of unemployed per job opening fell sharply in the construction industry to 6.2 in June--the lowest level since July 2008--from a revised 8.7 in May.

According to the Federal Reserve's latest quarterly Senior Loan Officers Opinion Survey, a net 3.1 percent of lenders responding said demand for "non-traditional" residential loans increased from the survey released three months ago and a net 25 percent of respondents said demand for loans from sub-prime borrowers was higher than it was in May. At the same time, a net 6.3 percent of lenders said they had eased lending terms and standards for non-traditional mortgage loans.

DataQuick unveiled Market Intelligence TitleShare, an analytics engine offering insight into title transaction and lending trends from the company's property, sale, and mortgage information database.

Carrington Holding Company selected Christopher Whalen to head communications. As EVP, Whalen will take responsibility for media relations and communications for the group. He will also continue to lead industry research and support Carrington's corporate finance activities.

The nation's economy added 162,000 jobs in July as the unemployment rate fell to 7.4.percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Economists had forecast payrolls would grow by 175,000 and that the unemployment rate would dip to 7.5 percent. The financial sector added 15,000 jobs in July, up from the average of 10,000 for May and June. New financial jobs included 3,600 underwriters and 3,000 new real estate jobs, reflecting the uptick in home sales.

Carrington Mortgage Services has announced it has expanded its portfolio of government loan programs by offering U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) loans through its retail and wholesale lending operations.

First time claims for unemployment insurance dropped to the lowest level in five years, falling 19,000 to 326,000 for the week ended July 27, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected the number of claims to drop to edge up to 345,000, from the 343,000 originally reported for the week ended July 20.