Having Trouble Finding Foreclosures?
Many professionals advise that one way to get a good deal on a property is buy one undergoing foreclosure. A foreclosure usually occurs when an owner misses a specified number of payments to his lender. The lender (usually a bank) is not in the real estate business. So, the logic here is that the bank just wants to rid the property from their books for a reasonable offer, even if it is somewhat below the market price. This serves to clear their ledgers, so they can move forward with other business at hand.
But foreclosures are getting harder to find. The ATTOM Data Solutions’ Year-End 2019 Foreclosure Market Report, finds that foreclosures were down 21% from 2018 – and down 83% from the peak of about 2.9 million homes in 2010. Since the firm began its annual Foreclosure Reports, in 2005, 2019 represented the lowest number of foreclosures on record.
For Florida, while foreclosures were down statewide from a year earlier, more Orlando homeowners received first notice from their lenders than in 2018 (16% higher). Florida came in at number four among states with the most homes facing foreclosures (New Jersey topped the list). Among cities, Jacksonville was number three, and Lakeland came in at number five. But among metro areas of one million or more, Jacksonville was number one.
But the overall decline in distressed properties, points to a healthy economy and a strong housing market. “The home foreclosures rates continued shrinking dramatically across the United States in 2019, to a level not seen in 10 years, as the strong economy leaves more people in a position to make their mortgage payments,” said ATTOM’S general manager, Ohan Antebian. Decreases in foreclosures occurred in all but one state.
With the scarcity of distressed properties on the market, now is a good time for an owner not meeting his mortgage payments to put his home on the market. Due to the lack of distressed homes on the market, the average sale price for a property entering foreclosure rose to a record high in 2019 – but as mentioned earlier, a prospective buyer may still pay below the market price for a distressed property.
ATTOMS advises that a seller should be aware that the foreclosure process can be a long one. The average for all states is 384 days, The states with the longest foreclosure processes Hawaii (1,712 days), Indiana (1,339 days), Nevada (1,339 days, and Georgia (1,257) days.
When foreclosure filings combined with default notices, ATTOMS reports that the number of homes in this category is down 6% nationally from the 3rd quarter (Q3) of 2019, and down 19% from a year ago. U.S. foreclosure activity in Q3 of 2019 was 49% below the pre-recession average. The third quarter represented the 17th consecutive quarter with a year over year decrease in foreclosure starts.
The strong economy with low unemployment and rising wages reflect a market in which owners can meet their mortgage payments.