We know the foreclosure activity picked up. We also know that we have brisk activity when writing offers, many times, at a multiple-offer situation.
So it wasn't a shock to see this headline that talked about repossessions in the Bay area soaring. Read the story
In the Bay Area, mortgage companies recorded 18,516 notices of default, up more than 140 percent from a year ago. Foreclosures rose nearly 315 percent to 9,206.
Notices of default, the first step in foreclosure proceedings, rose nearly 125 percent from a year ago during the second quarter, and trustee deeds recorded, which reflect the actual homes repossessed, soared more than 260 percent, according to research firm DataQuick Information Systems.
There were 63,061 foreclosures statewide during the second three months of the year compared to 17,458 during the same period a year ago.
Foreclosures will continue to climb until at least the third quarter of 2009 due to: rising unemployment rates that will apply pressure even to homeowners who secured prime loans, and the expectation that many borrowers soon will face higher payments on option adjustable-rate mortgages.
Lenders are overwhelmed with paperwork and taking longer to issue default notices. Or lenders could be more willing to allow short sales - unloading distressed properties for less than the amount owed on the loan - instead of initiating the foreclosure process.
Among homeowners who fall into default, an estimated 22 percent now escape foreclosure by catching up on their payments, refinancing or selling, DataQuick said. That's down from 52 percent a year ago
They included a link to see what's happening by zip code