BOSTON – In the first three months of the year, foreclosure deeds filed in Bristol County, Mass., fell 12.68 percent year over year, a greater drop than the statewide 2.55-percent drop reported today by The Warren Group, a Boston-based real estate tracker.
Foreclosures in Bristol County dropped to 248 deeds from 284 deeds in the first three months of 2008. Statewide, foreclosure deeds – the final step in a foreclosure – fell to 2,755 from 2,827.
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While the statewide quarterly drop in foreclosures seems slim, the statewide drop in March was more significant. Foreclosures in that month fell 18.34 percentto 953 deeds from 1,167. March foreclosures in Bristol County fell 17.80 percent, dropping to 97 deeds from 118.
“Foreclosure activity appears to have moderated compared to last year. However, we have some concern that the glimmer of hope provided by the year-over-year drop-off in March foreclosure petitions could be temporary,” CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr. said in a statement this morning. “In the first few months of 2008, lenders were scurrying to initiate foreclosures because they were anticipating a law that went into effect last May that requires them to give borrowers a 90-day notice before starting foreclosure proceedings. That could have spurred a spike in foreclosure petitions in the early part of last year.”
And Warren noted that some lenders had instituted foreclosure moratoriums in late 2008 and early this year. He added, “But many banks and mortgage companies have lifted their moratoriums and are now stepping up foreclosures on delinquent borrowers. This could lead to a jump in foreclosure activity going forward.”
In Massachusetts, foreclosures are tracked through judicial filings. In Rhode Island, however, foreclosure proceedings are non-judicial.
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 www.thewarrengroup.com.
