Colorado Foreclosures Decline

A report released by the Colorado Division of Housing suggested that statewide foreclosure sales dipped particularly in the metropolitan counties of Larimer and Weld to a 19-month low in October. Foreclosure sales for October are the smallest since March 2009.

Foreclosure filings for the 10 months of 2010 are at 16.2 percent against sales that increased to 17.2 percent meaning that foreclosure homes are getting purchased and the inventory going down. There were over 32 bank foreclosures in Larimer County in October 2009, this year there are only 17. A total of 15 homes were sold on short sales in October 2009, this year it is down to just four. Short sales are transactions where the lender allows the homeowner to sell their property at a price that is lower than the loan they owe.

In Fort Collins, the sale of bank foreclosures made up 10 percent of the total number of homes sold in October 2009. In October this year, it only represented 8.5 percent of foreclosure sales.

Country comparison indicated that the state of Colorado is among the 15 states with the smallest inventory of foreclosure homes. The news is a welcome development for people thinking of selling their homes. The rise in the number of foreclosure sales helps ease the downward push on home prices.

The decline in foreclosure inventory may be attributed to certain factors. One is the general slowdown in the processing of foreclosures following the “robo-signing” fiasco where banks have been accused of using robo-signers to expedite the processing of foreclosures. A probe initiated by bank regulators revealed that some major lenders admitted to approving multitudes of foreclosure papers without any legal review. This scandal has prompted country-wide investigations conducted by federal financial oversight panels.

The decline can also be attributed to the increased number of people being able to offer their homes on short sales or successfully restructuring their loans.