According to a new report, foreclosure filings jumped 24% in the first quarter compared to a year ealier and there was a 9% jump from a quarter earlier.
So what does this mean for someone in the market now? In a previous post I outlined why I thought the market was getting a little crazy and I told buyers to wait a couple months ( who would of thought, a Real Estate agent telling you not to buy) for more inventory. This is where the numbers become more interesting.
There were 803,489 total filings in the first quarter, but 341,180 happened in March, thats 42% of all the filings. That is a 17% increase from the month before and a 46% jump from a year earlier. What this tells me is that banks are not waiting any longer, they have begun to take serious action to get rid of the excess inventory. But guess what, those homes are not for sale yet, banks have streamlined the eviction and sale process, so within 90-120 days of the foreclosure many of these homes can be on the market. This is not always the case, sometimes it can take up to a year, but the first homes that are foreclosed are the vacant investor owned homes, so those become available quicker.
For home buyers in DC, MD, and VA make sure you sign up with I-Agent early. Connect with an agent so when a home pops up on the market that fits your criteria you are ready to take a look. Don't forget, when you buy a home with I-Agent you get Realtor rebate of up to 2% of the sales price.
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