Foreclosure Rates Take a Big Plunge
Posted by Lee Cameron on Thursday, March 17th, 2011 at 10:09am.
Across the country, the number of foreclosure notices that were filed in February dropped 14% compared to January, and a whopping 27% compared to February of 2010. That's the largest yearly decline on record. And here in Florida, the drop has been even more dramatic. Once one of the top states in the country for foreclosures, we've now slipped to number eight, with a year-over-year drop of 65%!
The numbers are encouraging but that doesn't mean we're necessarily out of the woods. Many experts believe that these drops are the result of the continued fallout from last year's robo-signing scandal. The mortgage industry is in the process of a massive overhaul, while all 50 states are seeking financial settlements over the issue. Naturally, many servicers have slowed their foreclosure process while they wait for the fallout to be resolved.
Additionally, some speculate that the extreme winter weather in the northern states over the past few months has slowed things down even more.
But even if the reasons are artificial, a foreclosure drop can have a major benefit, firming up home prices and allowing new home builders to come in and compete in the market again - even temporarily. The home building industry is a strong component of the national economy and when it starts to recover it will open up thousands of new job opportunities.
Whether the building industry will jump at this possibly temporary opportunity or whether they will wait for a more stable recovery remains to be seen.
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Interesting Article! Glad to hear a bit of good news.
Posted on Thursday, March 17th, 2011 at 3:36pm.