WNC Insurance Services launched a new insurance product exclusively for real estate-owned (REO) properties. Mortgage lenders and servicers can use the product to cover both residential and commercial REO properties for anything from floods to earthquakes, and from business contents to liability protection. The new product “puts a lender in control,” said CEO Bill Keeler in a media statement. “By allowing a lender to select the specific coverages, amounts and options it needs, it is able to manage its insurance costs more effectively,” he added. The product arrives as foreclosure filings on US housing units in particular are up 32% in April from the same time last year, according to a report by RealtyTrac. Homes and commercial properties repossessed by banks after foreclosure might sit vacant on the market for months, vulnerable to the elements or other types of damage. REO insurance covers lenders and servicers from such unanticipated losses. Write to Diana Golobay.