Feared flood of foreclosures in California may be averted

Feared flood of foreclosures in California may be averted
Los Angeles Times

Signs are emerging that a much-feared escalation of California home foreclosures may not happen, as banks respond to government pressure and scale back their repossessions of troubled properties.

Statewide, the number of homes taken back by lenders dropped sharply in the three months ended Sept. 30, falling 37% over the same period a year earlier, when foreclosures were at an all-time high.

More than 1,000 trained to help in foreclosure cases
Nwi.com

INDIANAPOLIS | Hoosier homeowners facing the threat of foreclosure may now have access to the help they need to hang onto their homes.

On Monday, Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard announced that more than 1,000 Indiana judges, attorneys and mediators have received training on how to better handle foreclosure cases.

Short sales move from snail to turtle's pace
The Baltimore Sun

By now you probably all know what a short sale is: a deal in which the lender allows a home to change hands for less than the balance on the mortgage, forgiving most or all of the difference.

For months, real estate agents have said there are far more would-be short sales than closed deals. The lenders reject the offers, or they take so long to consider that buyers give up and move on. Thus I was curious to hear what Olivia Surge, who negotiates short sales on behalf of homeowners at the Law Offices of G. Russell Donaldson in Crofton, is seeing now.

Investors grab bigger share of auctioned foreclosures
OC Register

Investors bought 278, or 39%, of the 718 houses and condos sold at auctions, known as trustee’s sales, in Orange County last month, reports ForeclosureRadar.com.

The ratio of properties not going back to the bank has been steadily increasing as lenders and loan servicers offer bigger discounts on auctioned properties. I have seen discounts as high as 60% off debt owed on a first mortgage (the discount to current market value is usually much less) and the norm seems to be around 30% off of debt owed.

Housing Starts Post Anemic Rise
The Wall Street Journal

Housing starts increased 0.5% in September to a 590,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate, the latest piece of data to show the housing market is slowly stabilizing with help from low prices and government tax credits.