Petitions to foreclose, auctions up again

Petitions to foreclose and auction announcements in Massachusetts rose again in July; it was the 18th straight month that announcements have risen compared with year-before numbers.

The numbers were contained in a report from the Warren Group, the Boston-based publisher of Banker & Tradesman and a provider of New England real estate data.

There were 2,185 petitions to foreclose filed in Massachusetts Land Court, up 66.5 percent from July 2006.

In June 2007, the Warren Group reported that the number of foreclosure filings by lenders was 2,309.

Auction announcement rose 130.2 percent to 1,128 in July 2007, the Warren Group reported.

Banks and lending companies scheduled 1,367 auctions of foreclosed Massachusetts homes in June.

"July held more of the same for Massachusetts homeowners," Warren Group chief executive Timothy Warren said in a statement. "More people are having trouble paying their mortgages, likely because rates on many are resetting, and more of those people getting into trouble are having a hard time getting out. They are finding it more difficult to refinance and resell, so more foreclosures are making it to the auction process."

Petitions to foreclose are the first step in the foreclosure process and do not always end in actual foreclosure, the Warren Group noted.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)