Just in time for fall market, a spike in foreclosures
Half decent homes at more reasonable prices - that sums up we need more of here in Greater Boston.
We can poke fun all day at Miami and Las Vegas and other grossly overbuilt markets, but at least there is no lack of new homes to pick from.
But instead of new homes or at least older ones in good repair, we are getting more getting more foreclosures, according to a report out this morning by The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
Foreclosures took a nose dive last fall, both in the Bay State and across the country, after the robo-signing scandal blew and revealed that major lenders were running shoddy, assembly-line style foreclosure mills.
Now foreclosure deeds - the last step in the process - are on the rise again across the state. And with the steady proliferation of distressed properties into the suburbs - I have one right around the corner from me here in Natick - the increase could cast a much wider pall than in years past.
Completed foreclosures topped 900 in August, the highest number yet for 2011, reports the Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.
And it is a sign that the foreclosure machine, running at low speed, is now kicking back up into high gear.
"We're seeing completed foreclosures hover around the 1,000 mark - a sign that lenders are beginning to work through the backlog and finalize the foreclosure process," said Banker & Tradesman Managing Editor Cory S. Hopkins, in a statement. "Foreclosures have been delayed by robo-signing and other documentation problems. This could certainly mean a glut of foreclosed homes will be pushed through the pipeline in coming months and years."
Who knows, maybe there are some gems tucked in here - after all, when it comes to inventory, the average middle-class home buyer in the Boston area doesn't have the luxury of being too picky.
