As a Mortgage Servicer (Servicer), you are faced with pressures to protect and preserve non-performing assets. The term "field services" refers to "property preservation" and "property inspections" - these services are usually required when a loan has gone in to default and the servicer has to maintain the properties integrity until foreclosure sale or reo Sale. These services can typically fall into five categories:

• Residential Inspections
• Initial Preservation Services
• Continuing Weekly or Monthly Services
• Repair Work
• As-Needed Services

Residential Inspections

Property Inspections arm the Servicer with information regarding occupancy status and condition of the property. Most investors and government agencies (HUD, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and the Veterans Administration) require servicers to perform property inspections anywhere from monthly to weekly so the condition of the property is always known. Property Inspections are the most commonly used service in the industry today.

Initial Services

Immediately upon finding a property vacant, most Servicer's are anxious to have initial work done on that property as soon as possible. Such services typically include:

• Re-keying of all applicable doors
• Securing all exterior openings at the property and locking all outbuildings, garages, and gated areas
• Installation of lockbox
• Replacement of broken windows or board-up, as necessary
• Interior and exterior debris removal
• Initial yard maintenance
• Winterization (depending upon the area of the country and time of year and also depending upon the immediate marketing plans for the property)
• Complete Systems Check to determine status of heating/cooling etc

Continuing Weekly or Monthly Services

These usually involve regularly scheduled services from the time a property becomes vacant until it is sold. Typical examples of this type of service are yard maintenance work and snow removal. Weekly inspections of the property involve checking on the status of systems, security, and overall condition.

Repair Work

These services usually include restoration, re-carpeting, painting, wall repair, roof repair, insurance loss repair and similar types of repairs that are designed to protect the marketability and value of the property.

As-needed services

Some services are ordered by Lenders or Servicers to cover special situations during the period that a property is on the market. Examples of these services include:

• Emergency repairs
• Plumbing de-winterization
• Interior cleaning of the property