Foreclosure petitions slip in Mass., Bristol County, in November

FORECLOSURE PETITIONS FELL 15.1 percent over the year in November in Bristol County, according to The Warren Group. / COURTESY THE WARREN GROUP
FORECLOSURE PETITIONS FELL 15.1 percent over the year in November in Bristol County, according to The Warren Group. / COURTESY THE WARREN GROUP

BOSTON – Foreclosure petitions in Massachusetts fell nearly 16 percent over the year in November, The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman, said Wednesday.

“Foreclosure starts have slowed in the second half of 2016,” Timothy Warren, CEO of The Warren Group, said in a statement. “After sizeable increases in foreclosure starts for two-and-a-half years, we have seen double-digit decreases in each of the past three months.”
Massachusetts lenders filed 880 petitions to foreclose in November, compared with 1,047 filed in November 2015. Petitions also fell 15.1 percent in Bristol County, to 90 in November from 106 in November 2015.

However, year to date, petitions increased 6.8 percent statewide when compared with the same period in 2015, to 11,410 from 10,680. Petitions are the first step in the foreclosure process, when lenders file notice of their intention to foreclose with the Commonwealth’s Land Court.

Statewide, there were 602 auction notices filed in November, a 4.9 percent decrease from 633 in November 2015. In Bristol County, there was a 21.5 percent increase in auction notices, to 96 in November from 79 in November 2015.

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A total of 8,000 auctions have been scheduled in Massachusetts in 2016 through November, a 26.4 percent increase from the same stretch in 2015 when there were 6,328. An auction notice is a legal advertisement that the lender has scheduled an auction and publicly announced the time, date and address in local newspapers.

There were 448 foreclosure deeds filed statewide in November, 12.8 percent more than 397 deeds filed at the same time last year. Bristol County mirrored statewide patterns in deed filings, registering a 72.2 percent increase year over year in November, to 62 from 36.

There were 5,698 deeds recorded in Massachusetts year to date, a 45 percent increase from the 3,930 filed through November 2015. Deeds represent completed foreclosures, when lenders record a new deed at the Registry of Deeds indicating there has been a change in the ownership of the foreclosed property.

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