Foreclosure and Real Estate Blogs

O.K., I’m on a media bent today.  I just looked through some foreclosure new feeds and saw reports that Vermont foreclosures are up 30% and Florida foreclosures don’t show any sign of letting up.  Duh.

I’ll venture to say that any state/region that saw huge amounts of price appreciation over the past few years is going to have a foreclosure problem for the next few years.  It’s not just a sub-prime mess, there were a ton of people that bought, not wanting to miss out on buying property while prices seemed to always go up.  Did they over-purchase, and is it possible they’ll have problems making future payments?  There’s a good percentage of people that did, and will have problems.

The last time Southern California had a major peak in property price it was right around 1990.  Prices declined from that time until about 1996.  This run-up lasted longer, and was probably more intense due to relaxed lender standards.  So, are we likely to see at least a 6 year decline, or is this going to be just a little blip?  The only thing keeping many real estate markets going right now are the buyers who didn’t buy on the rise and are finding “value” in softer prices.

Two things to keep in mind.  Prices most likely will not reach pre-runup levels.  You’ll know it’s pretty much at the bottom when nobody wants to buy real estate.

I suppose I’ll just have to sigh, and accept that media sources will always seek to find drama in the obvious.

There’s been a lot of activity and discussion about what the recent Ohio foreclosure decisions mean. The controversy appears to have started with a post on the I am facing foreclosure blog. You can read it here. While the presented interpretation sounds pretty dramatic, Calculated Risk had a totally different take on it here.

The short version of the issue boils down to whether a lender can foreclose if they can’t prove they own the note.  The Ohio judge pretty much said lenders need to follow the legal procedures.  That means the lender needs to be able to prove they are owed the money, then prove payments aren’t being made, then they’ll be allowed to foreclose.

Does this transform the world as we know it?  Hardly.  Is it another example of media misinterpretation and publishing for the sake of drama?  That’s my guess.