Blog

Drew Harwell | Tampa Bay Times | “Florida is seeing fewer foreclosure filings, but so is everyone else, keeping the Sunshine State on top of the national heap for foreclosure rates, new data from research firm RealtyTrac show. About 70,000 statewide housing units saw a foreclosure filing in July, August and September, down 7 percentRead more

Press Release | Digital Journal | “RealtyTrac® (www.realtytrac.com), the nation’s leading source for comprehensive housing data, today released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™ for September and the third quarter of 2013, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 131,232 U.S. properties in September, a 2 percent increase from theRead more

Pamela M. Prah | Stateline “Florida still leads the country in overall foreclosure activity, but Maryland and Oregon experienced dramatic increases in foreclosure starts in recent months. Meanwhile, bank repossessions climbed significantly in Kentucky and New York. The number of U.S. homes entering the foreclosure process hit a seven-year low between July and September, but bankRead more

MARTHA BRANNIGAN | Miami Herald | “Even as Florida’s housing market is showing solid recovery with impressive gains in prices and sales volume, the state led the nation in foreclosures completed in the year ended in August; no other state was even close, according to CoreLogic. Of the 658,463 foreclosures completed nationwide during the 12-monthRead more

KATE BERRY | American Banker | “The nation’s four largest banks are holding $57 billion of seriously delinquent loans that they’ve been slow to move into foreclosure over concerns that the Federal Housing Administration, the government mortgage insurer, will refuse to cover the losses and hit them with damages, according to industry sources. The banks —Read more

“Citing a higher than average foreclosure rate, Moody’s Investors Service assigned a negative outlook for the city of St. Petersburg. The negative outlook was part of an Oct. 3 report from Moody’s that also affirmed the city’s Aa2 issuer rating, or a measure of the city’s ability to meet its obligations. The affirmation of theRead more

By Elliot Njus | oregonlive.com “An expanded state foreclosure mediation program is showing far more promise for homeowners than its 2012 launch, a virtual nonstarter. In the first six weeks since the expansion took effect in August, the program has received 456 requests for face-to-face meetings between mortgage borrowers and lenders, the Department of JusticeRead more

“A lawsuit accusing Bank of America Corp of reneging on promises to help distressed homeowners modify their mortgage loans and of driving them into foreclosure instead cannot proceed as a class action, a federal judge has ruled. While agreeing that the borrowers’ claims “may well be meritorious,” US District Judge Rya Zobel in Boston saidRead more

Solomon Poretsky, Demand Media | “Florida’s legislature passed the “Florida Fair Foreclosure Act” on July 1, 2013. It’s designed to help clear up Florida’s large backlog of foreclosures. As written, it contains protections for both lenders and borrowers and spans both owner-occupied and investment properties. Even with the homeowner protections, the law is unpopular withRead more

Scott Gunnerson | FLORIDA TODAY | “Zombies are everywhere lately, it seems. TV shows, video games, even chasing runners during special 5K races. You might even have a zombie next door. The first sign of trouble: An unmaintained yard, growing wild amid Florida’s summer heat and rain. “Zombie” properties — homes abandoned by the owners, but stillRead more