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Local Edition ORIGINATION Vickie Crestani moves up in the company from her EVP role. COLORADO // Home sales and prices both improved year-overyear for the 19th straight month in August, according to multiple listing service (MLS) data from RE/MAX. According to the latest RE/MAX National Housing Report—a survey of MLS data in 52 metropolitan 360 Mortgage Announces New Regional Manager Scott Brackett will be responsible for the country's western region. TEXAS // 360 Mortgage Group, a and 25 reported double-digit gains, with the highest increases appearing in Burlington, Vermont (+29.6 percent); Chicago, Illinois (+26.7 percent); Manchester, New Hampshire (+24.4 percent); Des Moines, Iowa (+21.2 percent); and Albuquerque, New Mexico (+20.7 percent). At the same time, the median price of homes sold across all areas was $188,450, a 12.9 percent increase year-over-year (albeit a 0.5 percent decline from July). It was the 19th straight month in which the national median price rose on an annual basis. Out of all the markets surveyed, 51 experienced higher sales prices "Despite low inventory and rising interest rates, demand for housing is strong, and both home sales and prices remain higher than one year ago," said RE/MAX CEO Margaret Kelly. "Now that the active summer season is behind us, the results are clear: 2013 is continuing the recovery that started in 2012." The inventory drought also continued to clear, with declines slowing down for the fifth consecutive month. The number of homes for sale in August was 3.4 percent lower than July's inventory but 17.4 percent below that of August 2012, which was actually an improvement from the 20.7 percent yearly decline privately owned mortgage banker headquartered in Austin, Texas, announced the hiring of Scott Brackett as regional manager for the western region of the United States. In his position at 360 Mortgage, Brackett will focus on expanding the company's wholesale lending platform throughout Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. Brackett has 23 years' mortgage and banking experience, joining 360 Mortgage from Wells Fargo's Private Mortgage Group, where he directed, managed, and coached a specialized team of private mortgage bankers. Prior to that, he was a VP/ regional sales manager at Carrington Holding Company as well as a VP/ regional production manager at Morgan Stanley/Saxon Mortgage. "Scott is an excellent addition to our management team, and his skills and experience will be a critical asset as 360 Mortgage expands its wholesale platform throughout the western region," said Mark Greco, president and founder of 360 Mortgage. "Scott has an impressive history of successfully leading and managing teams of brokers, bankers, and sales professionals that generated positive business results through new business growth and unparalleled service." The M Report | 39 se c on da r y m a r k e t Housing metrics continued to improve through August, though the market still lacks balance. According to the latest RE/MAX National Housing Report, August was the 26th consecutive month in which sales climbed above their prior-year levels. recorded in July. In addition, 11 metro areas reported monthly gains in available inventory. Of all the homes sold in August, the average number of days on market was 62, flat from July but 19 days lower than the average in August 2012. The months' supply of inventory was 4.4, still below the six-month mark considered to be a "balanced" market between buyers and sellers. a na ly t ic s RE/MAX Reports Strong Finish for Summer Season than last year, with 23 reporting double-digit increases. The strongest performers in August were Detroit, Michigan (+50 percent year-over-year); Miami, Florida (+39.7 percent); Atlanta, Georgia (+39.6 percent); Las Vegas, Nevada (+33.6 percent); and San Francisco, California (+29.3 percent). s e r v ic i ng TEXAS // One of Title365's founders has been appointed president of Texas State Operations for the company. Vickie Crestani has more than three decades of industry-related experience and has an extensive working knowledge of commercial and residential closing transactions, real estate exchanges, and executivelevel management experience. She has held a number of senior-level positions with several major underwriters and title agencies. Before taking her current position, Crestani served at Title365 as EVP of compliance and operations. "Vickie has a remarkable track record of both leading and managing through aggressive growth phases resulting in increased revenue, geographic expansion, and continued innovation," said Title365 CEO Michael Tafoya. "Her dedication to fostering staff development, along with her passion for service excellence, makes her the ideal person to execute our mission as Title365 expands its Texas presence, with a focused goal to bring our technology innovation and Title365 culture to our growing Texas client base." areas—showed August closed transactions declined 5.3 percent month-over-month but increased 6.5 percent year-over-year. August was the 26th consecutive month in which sales climbed above their prior-year levels. Of the 52 metros tracked, 41 posted higher sales than August 2012, Or ig i nat ion Title365 Appoints President for Texas Operations