The total of outstanding foreclosure auction notices on Orange County homes hit 10,513 at the end of December, the highest in this housing downturn, reports ForeclosureRadar.com.
The total has more than doubled in the nine months since March, when it was 4,573.
ForeclosureRadar tracks outstanding notices of trustee’s sale, which announce a house or condo will be sold at auction. Such notices are usually good for only one year.
Sean O’Toole, head of ForeclosureRadar, said although foreclosure filings overall decreased at the end of 2009, the backlog of delinquent loans keeps growing.
He said only a portion of borrowers are getting loan modifications enabling them to avoid foreclosure.
“It is clear that political pressure on lenders to delay foreclosure is working,” O’Toole said. He went on via email:
I think it is postponing a real, long term, sustainable recovery. As a nation we simply have too much of our income going to housing debt, to have a meaningful recovery in a consumer driven economy. That said … we are seeing quite a few positive trends in housing currently … even if they have been artificially created by holding back (or “preventing”) foreclosures, lowering interest rates and offering tax credits. Whether you call it “helping families save their homes”, or “extend and pretend”, I don’t foresee a change in course anytime soon.
As for the percentage that end up successful loan mods that really depends on what happens with principal balance reductions. Right now our country is pretty divided on that issue. Some are yelling from the rooftops that it is the only solution, others are ready to tar and feather any politician that even considers giving their neighbor a bailout. This will be one of the most interesting housing debates of 2010.
Note: ForeclosureRadar did not provide data from past corrections, but I would guess December’s total of outstanding NTS is the highest ever.
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