Archive for the 'States' Category

An active market for California foreclosures is attracting investors and first-time homebuyers in the golden state. This resulted to a sharp decline in home values and prices across all counties and cities. Most of the available inventories are bank-owned foreclosure homes that are being sold in bargain prices.

With the year-end closing, banks and financial institutions are short-selling these homes to get them off their books. These sales activities are making a big impact in the reduction of home prices as a whole.

In Contra Costa County, home prices dropped 24.2 percent during the third quarter of 2008 as compared to the same period last year. Average home prices are within $397,510. Decline rates are slightly lower in Alameda County running at 18.9 percent with homes rated at an average of $479,668. San Mateo County fell 13.5% percent with an average home price of $698,179.

One of the hardest hit areas in the country for increases in foreclosures and falling home prices is San Joaquin County. Homes dropped up to 35.5% from its previous price, with homes ranging only $210,179. These values are from the median market and include single family houses and condominiums within the same area.

These figures are starting to reflect the impact of the economic turmoil raging across the country. Add to this effect is the steady decline of the stock market plus an increase in unemployment rates compounding this current crisis on foreclosures.

With these figures, experts are predicting the situation to get worse, but are optimistic that it soon about to get better. With a strong home sales activity in these counties, experts are hoping that the market will soon stabilize. They are expecting the declining home values to flatten in the next quarter and the rates of increase in foreclosures to die down.

With over 23,600 Florida foreclosures in Lee County alone, the local government is planning to purchase foreclosed homes up for sale to be rehabilitated and later sold to low income families. The move is also geared to help generate income for local contractors and help stabilize the rate of high crimes in these areas.

Most foreclosures in the county are concentrated in Lehigh Acres and Cape Coral, where up to 39 percent of homes are in various levels in the process of foreclosure. Incidentally, the Lehigh area also has high crime rates based on crime data from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. Vacant homes have become a haven for criminals trying to avoid detection. These homes have also become the target of thieves targeting building materials.

County officials are looking for homes in the target areas where 8 to 20 percent of housing units are foreclosure homes and have been vacant or abandoned for more than 90 days. Officials plan to buy these homes at 15 percent below their appraised value and the rehabilitation work will be posted for bidding to local contractors. Lehigh also has 480 abandoned construction sites. 272 have already been cleaned up by property owners while the local government has processed 82 and demolished two.

County officials expect to receive funds in the middle of January next year. Funds will come from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as part of its federal neighborhood stabilization program to address foreclosures. Expected funds would reach $16 million and will be used to buy and recondition 165 single and multi-family homes, and an additional $400,000 for demolition work on 20 units. After rehabilitation, these will be sold to lower income families.

With $1.8 million in budget for administration work on this program, county officials are committing 18 months for the project completion. Rehabilitated homes should be occupied within a four-year period.

Analysts say that despite the two-month rush in California home sales, the state has to work through a year’s worth bank-owned foreclosures.

It is anticipated that foreclosures will peak by next quarter and prices will fall 35 percent by next year, while stabilization of the housing market is expected in mid-2010.

Last month’s report provided that the existing home sales rose by 85 percent in August and 65 percent in September. MDA DataQuick’s statistics showed that 51 percent of the total sales in September came from foreclosed properties.

Experts say that REO sales bring down prices and move housing market dynamics. Since September, there have been a slowdown in the notices of default, but foreclosures have kept on rising in California.

In September, with a newly released state law requiring a lender to communicate with the borrower before filing a default notice within at least 30 days before, plus a rise in loan modifications when IndyMac Bank has been seized by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., default notices have dropped, but without a corresponding decrease in foreclosures.

Foreclosures’ peak is expected on the coming year’s first quarter, including a successive drop in REO inventory after a few months, if REO sales stay on high levels. A 12 to 18 month lag between foreclosures and REO inventory peaks may happen.

Declines in home prices in California differ by neighborhood. In Riverside and Stockton, prices drop by as much as 60 percent; while there have been no dramatic drops in prices in Los Angeles and San Francisco, some high-end neighborhoods. But as a whole, home prices are estimated to drop by 35 percent unless there will be great government intervention.

Banks have been very aggressive since borrowers find a hard time getting financing due to the credit crisis. Also, the rapid price drops in California has resulted from the increased supply without purchasing power.

What investors do now is buy and rent properties for positive cash flow as they wait for the stabilization of the housing market before selling.

Search for Foreclosures for Sale in California Cities:

• Los Angeles Foreclosures
• Riverside Foreclosures
• San Francisco Foreclosures
• Stockton Foreclosures

For homeowners, there is actually one more thing worse than losing your home to foreclosure – knowing that you are in this unfortunate situation because you have fallen victim to predatory lending practices.

As Election Day nears, more and more Maryland voters are getting worried about not being able to exercise their right to vote because of foreclosure. In an effort to address this particular concern, the state’s Attorney General has instructed all state and local election officials to let voters know that even if they have lost their homes to foreclosure, they have not lost the right to participate in the upcoming election.

Since Florida is among the states hit hardest by the foreclosure crisis, it can be expected that many housing advocacy groups would like to provide assistance to the thousands of troubled homeowners. One such assistance is provided in the form of a foreclosure prevention workshop scheduled at the New Covenant Baptist Church, located in Orlando.

If you are interested in buying a home but worried about being able to afford it, follow what the other budget-conscious real estate investors and home buyers are doing – participating in Michigan foreclosure auctions.

Many distressed homeowners in Illinois should welcome the news that foreclosure help is available for those who are seeking it. In an effort to curb the rising tide of foreclosure in the state, a series of foreclosure workshops will be conducted in 38 cities nationwide including St Louis on September 13.

The foreclosure crisis has not only resulted to Indiana homeowners losing their homes. It also cost most communities in terms of lowered home values. According to the housing advocate ACORN, communities spend around $85,000 for each foreclosed property.

In New York, troubled homeowners are getting additional help from their respected state courts. In line with the state’s efforts to curb the rising foreclosure rate, a new program involving early intervention will be launched. The said program will be tested first in Queens by this summer, where foreclosure filings have soared by 223 percent compared to 2005.