Foreclosures Pause in Philadelphia

May 20th, 2008

Figures show that foreclosure pause in Philadelphia. In the first quarter the foreclosure rate fell by nearly 30% in comparison to the same quarter of 2007. It was a happy change from the national rate of 1:194. Philadelphia now ranks 82 d amongst the metro regions of the country as per findings of RealtyTrac. In Philadelphia the more populous eight counties registered 3,064 foreclosure filings with a rate of 1:527. It is a drop of 29.64%.

In the top 10 metro lists are included 6 cities of California as well as Las Vegas (Nevada) Detroit (Michigan), Phoenix (Arizona) and Fort Lauderdale (Florida). The worst offender was Stockton (California) with 7,560 foreclosure postings and a rate of 1:30. It is an increase of 29.64% from the first quarter of 2008.

Across USA the number of filings was 649,917 during the first quarter showing an increase of 112% over the first quarter of the previous year.

Commenting on the drop in Philadelphia James Saccacio of RealtyTrac comments that ‘unusual non-market factors’ might have a hand in the play. A hold was put on all auctions scheduled for April. Owner-occupied foreclosure properties also underwent delay. The stipulation was that without face-to-face talks between the lenders and borrowers to find a viable alternative, no action would be allowed.

The decreasehad been noticed in 2007 when fewer foreclosure sales took place in comparison to 2003. Sheriff, John Green attributed this to the steps taken by his team in counseling and advising. In 2003 in Philadelphia 7,833 properties were scheduled for foreclosure sales but 2,694 finally got sold. In 2007 there were 5,670 scheduled for sale but 2,041 were sold. Green was optimistic, though cautious, that the steps taken would keep the problem in check. However foreclosure experts were critical saying that these temporary measures would not be able to stand up to the deluge of foreclosure houses that is apprehended. Moody of Economy.com echoed these views when he said ‘foreclosure moratoriums are delaying and not forestalling foreclosures.’ Another expert, Zandi, said that the foreclosure rate in Philadelphia would remain behind the national figures because this area was not caught in the investor frenzy of speculation.

The moratorium on foreclosure sale in the city does not include the suburbs where the foreclosures are slowly rising. But the sale numbers remain under control. Another survey shows that the worst affected are areas occupied by the medium and low-income groups.