First, the good news: Foreclosure filings dropped nearly 10% between
December and January. Now, the bad news: Filings rose 15% compared to a
year ago, and the number of people who actually had their homes
repossessed jumped 31% to 87,648.
"January foreclosure numbers are exhibiting a pattern very similar to a
year ago," said James Saccacio, RealtyTrac's CEO. "If history repeats
itself, we will see a surge in the numbers over the next few months as
lenders foreclose on delinquent loans where neither the existing
loan-modification programs or the new short sale and deed-in-lieu of
foreclosure alternatives works."
Most industry observers also expect home prices to decline further this
year before they stabilize. That will push more homeowners underwater --
meaning they owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth --
making them less likely or able to pay off their mortgage loans.
By Les Christie, staff writer
Edited by Paul Nelson
For more details Yahoo Finance.







