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.

How can the REALTORS® help?

Many of the tools lenders and mortgage market investors use today have a significant market lag, potentially causing property to be mispriced in rapidly changing local markets. In addition, they may have limited information with respect to the condition of a specific subject property, which could be better or worse than many of the comparable properties, leading again to property mispricing. When properties are sold below market value, mortgage investors incur more losses and further market price erosion occurs. REALTORS® utilizing RPR's tools and reports can make a significant contribution to closing these gaps which can assist in the stabilization of housing prices. Additionally, REALTORS® can make a positive impact on the market by:

• Participating in NAR's BPOR Certification program to enhance their BPO skills through best-in-practice training
• Becoming versed in what the RVM is and how it can help determine recent house price trends and how a home may be likely to be evaluated
• Assisting mortgage industry servicers in pricing and marketing REO properties and short sales by having better data and analytics that support and validate the REALTOR®'s knowledge of a specific property or market

In the traditional home buying market, the tradeoff between time-on-market and property price is always a challenge. Selecting the right comps, analyzing home price trends, and having knowledge of relevant neighborhood characteristics are all important capabilities of the REALTOR® that RPR helps to support and improve. When a REALTOR®'S information is supported and corroborated, the mortgage investor can be assured that the REALTOR® is the trusted "boots on the ground" source which can improve the housing market.

Other posts in this series

• From Real Estate to Mortgage Collateral
• Common Ground
• How Everybody Wins, Starting with the Consumer

To view the original article, visit the RPR blog.