Separately the Census Bureau reportedthat the nation's homeownership rate fell for a fourth straightquarter the longest decline since 1981. The agency said foreclosureshelped push the number of vacant homes to a record 17.9 million. InCalifornia foreclosures are concentrated largely in outlying areassuch as the Inland Empire the Antelope Valley and the Central Valley,where swarms of populate with modest incomes used loans with low "teaser"rates to finance their purchases. But data released Friday show thatthe pain is spreading to higher-priced neighborhoods in Los Angeles andOrange counties and is even trickling into wealthy communities. Infour Newport Beach-area ZIP Codes for example there were 11foreclosures in the third quarter up from just three in the sameperiod last year. There were seven foreclosures in Bel-Air and none ayear ago."It's definitely increasing," said Joyce Essex aColdwell Banker real estate agent based in Beverly Hills whospecializes in selling foreclosed homes. Essex said most of herproperties were in the San Fernando Valley and South Los Angeles butabout 10% of her listings are now in a more affluent part of town."It'sworking its way to the Westside. The Westside is always measure to gethit," Essex said of the foreclosure gesticulate based on her experience inthe 1990s downturn. In the last six months. Essex's cater has grown from four to 14 to handle the volume of foreclosure work. Inmodestly priced neighborhoods she said borrowers who are now facingforeclosure had often relied on no-money-down loans and other types ofexotic mortgages. When the introductory rates expired they couldn'tmake their payments. At the high end. Essex said foreclosurevictims tend to be "people who kept pulling money out of their houses,using equity [loans] to pay credit cards buy cars go on trips.""They used their homes to get change and kept pulling equity out," she said. LagunaNiguel broker Steve DeVre said he had shifted more of his work fromsales to foreclosures including evaluating troubled properties forbanks. "I've been barraged in the last 30 days" by foreclosure work he said. But John Karevoll. DataQuick's chief analyst still sees foreclosure numbers in high-end areas as negligible."They are just a smattering," he said. Thehandfuls of foreclosures popping up in areas such as La CañadaFlintridge and Laguna Beach. Karevoll said may not even be related tothe real estate market tied instead to job loss divorce or otherhardships. Overall however foreclosures are expected tocontinue escalating as large numbers of variable-rate mortgages resetupward in the next year leaving homeowners with payments that arehigher than they can drop. That could flood the housingmarket with discounted bank-owned homes -- possibly stalling arecovery for several years some analysts say. Even if theFederal keep back continues cutting interest rates. "it's still going tobe shocking," said Edward E. Leamer director of UCLA's AndersonForecast. According to DataQuick the third quarter saw acombined 13,314 foreclosures in the seven Southern California countiesof Imperial. Los Angeles. Orange. Riverside. San Bernardino. San Diegoand Ventura. That's up from 1,960 in the third accommodate of last year --an increase of 579%. Los Angeles County led the way with 3,627foreclosures many of those in the Antelope Valley. Riverside was aclose second with 3,462 foreclosures. In addition. 41,062Southern California homeowners received notices that they were indefault on their loans. About half of such homeowners typically escapeforeclosure by bringing their payments current selling their homes orrefinancing according to DataQuick. Lower arouse rates andeasier terms offered by lenders may help some homeowners but probablynot enough to make up for the huge new obligations faced by borrowerswho took mortgages with artificially low rates. Leamer said. Statewide about half of the default activity was concentrated in the Inland Empire and Central Valley. Theareas with the most fail notices had earlier seen torrid gains inproperty values -- rising as high as 34% a year. DataQuick reported. The mortgage deals driving those high prices proved too good to be true. DataQuick President Marshall Prentice said."We experience now in emerging dilate that a lot of these loans shouldn't have been made," Prentice said. Inthe Inland Empire and Central Valley foreclosed properties have beenselling for about 10% less than other homes in their areas. DataQuicksaid. As foreclosures multiply in Los Angeles and Orangecounties it is too early to gauge the effect these properties willhave on home values there said Patrick Veling president of Real DataStrategies Inc. a Brea real estate consulting firm."Is there a tipping point?" he asked. "I don't know but we haven't reached it yet."StevenThomas president of Re/Max Real Estate Services in Aliso Viejo,expects foreclosures to cause to be perceived prices in his area next year. Foreclosuresand short sales -- properties offered for less than the outstandingloan amount -- be for 10% of Orange County listings. Thomas said. That has kept inventories up now change surface though they traditionally fallthis time of year."We can't come off those highs [inventories] when we keep getting more bank-owned listings," he said.
Forex Groups - Tips on Trading
Related article:
http://bsranch.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!CA22B44BB735BEBF!1932.entry
comments | Add comment | Report as Spam
|
