DS News - U.S. Bank

» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 15 We're in the midst of another damaging hurricane season this year. What lessons did the industry take away from what happened during last year's storm season that you're seeing applied now? One thing the industry needs to recognize is that FEMA is a great resource, but it's limited. It can take quite a while for FEMA to work through the neighborhoods, particularly ones that are not on main arteries or roads. e industry needs to become more proactive as far as clearing away garbage and debris and not just waiting on FEMA to step in. One huge lesson we took away from 2017 was the infamous surge pricing. We know we have to be responsible for maintaining appropriate spending levels, but we have to keep in mind that pricing during and after a storm is not normal—it's not busi- ness as usual. It happens before the event and afterward. It's unfortunate, but it's the reality because resources are scarce. You've got field services companies competing with neighbors when the crews show up at a site. Neighbors are walking up to the crews and saying, "I'll give you cash if you come to my lot first." We speak to vendors and encourage them not to engage in price gouging, reminding them that we have an ongoing business relationship, but at the end of the day, many of them are using contract labor. We're trying to secure agreements with key vendors that set a preapproved spending level. How is technology transforming the landscape of property preservation right now? ere are two exciting areas. One is the access-management software and the other is drone technology. Drone technology is a game changer in areas where it's difficult to assess roof damage, where you can't really get up to it or where there's difficulty in actually reaching the properties in the first place. Access-management software is related to the whole "internet of things," and it could help reduce costs for property preservation, especially when you look at digital keyless entry-manage- ment systems. It gives you enhanced security because you have more control. It simplifies property management. A keyless environment eliminates all the issues with duplicate keys, theft, and vandalism, and you have an electronic trail of who enters the property. Unfortunately, many of these properties are without power after a storm, and they certainly don't have WiFi connectivity. Use of a Bluetooth lock is attractive. As this technology becomes more famil- iar and people see how easy it is to install, how easy it is to manage, it will become more widely adopted. You can add vendors from your keyboard in your office. You can grant someone access to properties at selected times of the day. If it's a maintenance clean once a month, you can schedule it so the lock will only open during those hours. It's an exciting technology that will provide more control and reduce costs for things such as rekeying. If someone puts a lock on the wrong door, you can let them back into the property in seconds rather than having some- body to go back out. Eventually, I think you'll see lockboxes becoming a thing of the past, and that's good—lock boxes scream that a property is vacant more than just about anything else. What is one thing you wish more people understood about what you do? We help maintain property values in the neighborhoods we go into. Blighted properties, boarded-up properties—these can be real value killers for a neighborhood. When we send our vendors in, those guys work in stressful, very tough working conditions, but they can perform miracles on these distressed properties. We'll have neighbors come up to us and say, "ank God—at least somebody is taking care of that." Even in well-kept neighborhoods, it only takes one property to create a negative economic impact. "There appears to be an increased market to sell REO properties as-is. We're seeing more touch-ups, fixing safety issues and code violations but not making significant repairs." THE LEADER IN DEFAULT SERVICING NEWS Help shape the next issue of DS News. Drop us a line at Editor@DSNews.com.

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