BOSTON – Foreclosures in Massachusetts fell in August compared with July, according to The Warren Group, a real estate tracking company.
The company reported 658 foreclosure deeds recorded in August, down 4.4 percent from the 688 deeds recorded in July. A total of 6,076 foreclosure deeds were recorded in the first eight months of 2009, a 31 percent drop from 8,811 last year.
Bristol County foreclosure deeds fell to 559 in the first eight months of the year, compared with 813 in the first eight months of 2008. But the number of foreclosure petitions – the first step in the process – increased to 1,669 from 1,202.
In Worchester County the number of petitions year-to-date increased to 2,931 from 2,190, The Warren Group said. But the number of deeds fell to 1,091 from 1,590. Other counties recorded similar trends.
“We are seeing this trend where the number of actual foreclosures has moderated this year compared to 2008,” said Timothy M. Warren, CEO of The Warren Group. “But what’s important to keep in mind is that lenders haven’t really slowed down on initiating foreclosures in Massachusetts. Since January, lenders have started an average of 110 foreclosure proceedings a day.”
At the same time, petitions to foreclose across the state shot up 154 percent to 2,396 in August from 943 during the same month last year but were 17.4 percent lower than the 2,899 petitions filed in July. So far this year, lenders have filed 19,108 petitions to foreclose, a 31.6 percent increase from 14,521 last year.
The Warren Group said the large jump in year-over-year foreclosure petitions is likely due to a state law that went into effect in May 2008 that led to a temporary lull in the initiation of foreclosure proceedings. The law requires lenders intending to start foreclosure proceedings to give defaulting borrowers 90 days to catch up with missed payments.
The Warren Group Inc. is a provider of New England real estate data and the publisher of Banker & Tradesman and other journals. Additional information is available at TheWarrenGroup.com.
