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November was a bad month for delinquent homeowners. A foreclosure listing put out by RealtyTrac Inc. shows that a record number of those homes are scheduled for auction since nine months ago. Unless the homeowner can find a way to become current, a new wave of foreclosures is about to hit the home sales market. A glut of foreclosed homes will have the effect of depressing prices in the areas affected, but it may eventually clear the foreclosure inventory which has been backed up since last October.
 
 
 
 

Delayed Reaction

To be fair, the new wave of foreclosures can be linked to the pent-up demand that occurred with the robo-signing scandal. After banks froze foreclosures in October of last year, the number of foreclosures dropped. Banks decided to review their paperwork and re-file it to make sure it would not be legally challenged later. Now, those foreclosures that were delayed may also be a part of the new foreclosures that are hitting the market.

Some States Worse Off

As usual with this homeowner’s crisis, some states are worse off than other states. California and Washington continue to lead the country in the increase of foreclosures that are about to hit the market. California is experiencing a 63 percent increase while Washington had a 56 percent increase in November of this year. Other states that have been affected by the rise in foreclosures coming to market are: Georgia, Utah, South Carolina, Ohio, Illinois, Florida, and Michigan.

The Good News

While the foreclosures coming to market are increasing, the actual number of homes headed into foreclosure decreased. This is a hopeful sign that once the inventory of foreclosed homes is cleared the housing market may begin to stabilize in areas worst hit by the foreclosure crisis. This may a few years down the line, but for those people who own their homes and are not in foreclosure, the end can’t come soon enough.