Home › Breaking News
Foreclosure activities continue to climb during second quarter
Download this story as a podcast!
STORY TOOLS 
More from Breaking NewsBlighted by sinking home values and the "rampant spoilage" of risky loans generated in 2005 and 2006, default notices soared to record levels last quarter, DataQuick Information Systems reported today.
In Ventura County, there were 2,303 notices of default filed for homes and condos from April to June, up 117.5 percent from 1,059 notices filed during the same period a year ago.
Notices of default, the first step in a complicated and lengthy foreclosure process, are sent to defaulting borrowers and are filed at the county recorders office.
More notifications were delivered than ever last quarter throughout almost all of the state's 58 counties.
Lenders across the state recorded 121,341 default notices last quarter, the highest in DataQuick's statistics, which date back to 1992. Default notices edged up 6.6 percent from 53,943 during the first quarter, and a more substantial 124.9 percent from 53,943 during the second quarter of 2007, the real estate information service reported.
"The small increase in defaults from the first to the second quarter may indicate that we're nearing a plateau," said John Walsh, DataQuick president, in a statement. "We won't know until the end of the year, but it may be that some lenders are starting to prioritize workouts with homeowners instead of grinding through the foreclosure process."
Or, lenders simply might be swamped and can't handle processing any more paperwork, he said.
Most of the loans that went into default last quarter were originated from September 2005 through November 2006, according to DataQuick. On primary mortgages, California homeowners were a median five months behind on their payments when the lenders filed the notice of default.
The borrowers owed a median $11,583 on a median $346,400 mortgage.
Trustees Deeds, or the actual loss of a home to foreclosure, totaled 63,061 statewide last quarter, the highest in DataQuick records, and a 33.5 percent increase from 17,458 a year ago.
According to DataQuick, an estimated 22 percent of defaulting homeowners emerge from the foreclosure process by bringing their payments current, refinancing, or selling the home. The number of troubled homeowners forced out of their homes has risen sharply from 52 percent a year ago, a result of a sluggish and stagnant housing market flooded with inventory and slumped values.
DataQuick also attributes the uptick to the number of homes bought during the market's peak with multiple-loan financing, "which makes work-outs difficult."
On the Net:
Posted by pyro152 on July 22, 2008 at 12:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Always a good time to buy real estate in CA. We have reached the bottom. Get in before it's too late. ;-)
Two fun numbers to look at along with this data are the median sales prices compared to last quarter/year and the inventory compared to last quarter/year. Oh, and dont forget that there are fewer potential buyers now that loans are getting harder to come by.
Posted by bugmenot on July 22, 2008 at 12:28 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I disagree, we've got at least a year, maybe a couple more years to go before we hit a bottom.
We'll know we've hit the bottom when it starts to turn around. I just don't see it.
Posted by JamaicaClipper on July 22, 2008 at 12:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I talked with a real estate person about 10yrs ago and I asked him where the ceiling was here in ventura county and he said there is no celing because ventura count is a highly desireable place to live. Now Iam wondering if that same real estate person knows where the floor is now. I don't think we have reached it yet maybe sometime next year. It may very well go through the floor.
Posted by mikeb6804 on July 22, 2008 at 1:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
No sense being alarmed, Clipper. The drop in real estate prices is also a dose of reality which we haven't been exposed to in a long time. Prices were at an artificial level. I think we are close to bottom but I don't think we'll see prices take a rapid hike upward.
Posted by JamaicaClipper on July 22, 2008 at 1:05 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I think you are right on Mike
Posted by sirdvsdsw on July 22, 2008 at 1:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Real estate and the banking world go hand in hand, cant have one without the other. Before the real estate market takes a turn for the better the banking industy will have to solid.
Posted by CAPEDad on July 22, 2008 at 1:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Many Alt-A (low quality) and option-ARM loans are set to readjust throught the next two years. Trust me folks, this is just the beginning. Also, pyro152 was right on the money - it is very difficult for speculators to get financing - no more easy money to propel prices higher.
If you're renting - wait it out. In the next year you'll get to the point where your payment will be less than the rent you're paying (after deducting interest). Try to borrow a down payment from family or friends and get your finances in order - BUT WAIT FOR NOW, you're not going to miss any bump in prices!!
Posted by rebel123 on July 22, 2008 at 3:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
There are signs of recovery in some areas. Santa Barbara inventory is starting to clear out. Sales in Riverside area are actually higher than last year this time which is an indicator of people plucking up bargains. If you are intending to buy a house for the long term, i.e. at least ten years, now is a good time to buy. If the economy keeps tanking, interest rates will rise. They are still historically low. The feds just raised the loan limits to over $700K so if you can qualify and actually have enough income to borrow, this is the time to get in. Yes, it could fall more but if interest rates rise, any lower price will be offset by that.
Posted by CAPEDad on July 22, 2008 at 3:40 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Sorry rebel123, but rising rates and tougher lending standards will only dry-up real demand. The rush of buyers you hope for won't develop. Falling prices will more than compensate any payment savings.
Posted by Machine on July 22, 2008 at 4:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
hmmm... I wonder what the % of these defaults are that are CHOOSING not to pay their mortgage because they believe they will be bailed out by the US government?
Posted by ReadMyLipsNoNewTaxes on July 22, 2008 at 4:27 p.m. (Suggest removal)
rebel must be in 'the business'
Things that will need to change before housing prices are at a bottom.
-Banks will need to be solvent
-We will need a new president
-Energy prices will need to stabilize
-Consumer confidence will need to increase
Posted by Fred on July 22, 2008 at 5:02 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Great - we are at the bottom - then no need to rescue WaMu or Fannie or others!
The banks that created this mess should go out of business - they essentially did the equivalent of you lending all of your money to a crackhead on the street and expecting to get it paid back. Would you do that? Highly paid risk assessment professionals? These guys should all go down.
Fred
Posted by guy133 on July 22, 2008 at 5:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Shocking. I can't believe everybody isn't able to afford $600k+ houses on their $100k- incomes.
Posted by guy133 on July 22, 2008 at 5:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ReadMyLips,
That's a great list of impediments to the housing market "bouncing back".
I should put that list in my wallet and pull it out any time I think about buying a house.
(Requires free registration.)
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.