You may have seen headlines that foreclosure filings in March surged 24 or 50 percent. But the Examiner has broken out the local data, which is far more encouraging.
Foreclosure filings in Prince William dropped 40 percent year over year, and 10 percent in Loudoun County. This is great news for both counties, which have had a particularly tough go the past two years.
Somewhat suprisingly, filings were up slighty in Montgomery County, possibly due to rising unemployment in the area. The county's government has dedicated $2.5M to help homeowners facing foreclosures. One of the groups tapped to help homeowners is HomeFree-USA, which is mentioned in the story. At the same time, foreclosure rescue scams are on the rise, so be carefuly before you sign anything or give any one any money to help you "clean up your credit" or avoid foreclosure.
"HomeFree-USA, based in Hyattsville, is hosting “Foreclosure Intervention Day” on April 25 to help distressed homeowners. 'We helped 1,000 metro D.C. homeowners avoid foreclosure at the beginning of the year, and we are ready to do the same for 1,000 more people,' said Marcia Griffin, founder and president of HomeFree-USA."
For more information, go to HomeFreeUSA.org.
Lenders increasingly agree to short sales to avoid foreclosure
Comments
It is my understanding these stats are particularly misleading. In Loudoun County, for example, many banks are not foreclosing on homes to avoid paying the large HOA fees many communities have here. By not foreclosing the homeowner remains responsible for paying the fees. Some areas, like Belmont, the fees are $200 a month!!
Why would they do that in Loudoun county & not elsewhere? Other areas have HOA fees - yet their foreclosures are rising.
I did a quick search, but did not see anything about lenders not foreclosing to avoid HOA fees (or taxes for that matter.)
However, many lenders are agreeing to short sales, where the home is sold for less than what is owed on the property, rather than foreclosing on the property.
The net affect is that homes are still selling for less, but foreclosure is "worse" for the community, because the property may sit vacant for weeks or months, falling into disrepair.
Fredricksburg.com: "A short sale occurs when the home is sold for less than what is owed on the mortgage loan, and the seller is relieved of the difference. It's up to the lender to agree to it; area Realtors say lenders have become more likely to do so in the past year, as they avoid the costly and time-consuming foreclosure process."
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