2009 tri-county foreclosures miss 100,000 mark, but just barely
More than 97,000 foreclosures were filed in 2009 in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, according to a Condo Vultures report released this morning.
Earlier last year, Condo Vultures was predicting that foreclosures in the tri-county area would surpass 100,000 in 2009, but that estimate was scaled back following new federal loan modification efforts.
“As projected, the number of foreclosure filings in South Florida failed to eclipse the 100,000 threshold,” said Peter Zalewski, a principal with the Bal Harbour, Fla.-based real estate consultancy Condo Vultures LLC. “The newfound willingness of lenders to suddenly work with borrowers to modify mortgages or approve short sales has undoubtedly had an effect on the number of foreclosure filings in South Florida.”
While foreclosures didn’t surpass the “psychologically significant” 100,000 mark, they did increase 29 percent compared to 2008.
In 2007, just 32,000 foreclosures were filed in the tri-county area.
Palm Beach County saw a 17 percent increase in foreclosure filings in 2009, reaching 28,592 actions.
In 2008, there were 24,449 actions filed against properties in Palm Beach County.
In 2007, just 9,029 foreclosure actions filed in Palm Beach County, according to the report.
January 05 2010 07:01 am | Delray Beach Real Estate