Aug30th
Thursday, August 30th, 2007
It has been difficult to put a positive spin on the foreclosure crisis gripping this country, but the news out of New Jersey gives the impression that although all is not well at least the bleeding has slowed down somewhat. According to RealtyTrac, last month 215 homes were foreclosed on, representing a 25% increase from June and a 65% increase from July of last year, which is a small number when compared to the previous month and against the same period last year.
The president of one New Jersey real estate research firm has said while the increase appears large; the number of homes foreclosed on is still quite small when compared against the total number. The major factor contributing to the problem remains the same as it is across the country.
Homeowners who purchased or refinanced mortgages using adjustable rate loans just a couple years ago are now going through the reset periods on those loans. They are seeing their interest rates climb which in turn increases their mortgage payments. Many of these borrowers are in the sub-prime category putting them at higher risk to default on their home loan as they typically had moderate credit to begin with. For those homeowners already treading the edge of the financial abyss this was the nudge they needed to complete their fall.
All is not gloom and doom as there may be relief on the horizon as the state government has recognized the need, and urgency, to offer assistance to any New Jersey homeowner facing foreclosure. There has been call for a consumer hotline to be established. Homeowners in New Jersey facing foreclosure could call in for advice and counseling. A recent search has revealed this suggestion has not been put into motion.
As the sub-prime lending market continues its collapse across the nation residents of New Jersey are still faced with the possibility of losing their homes through foreclosure with seemingly little in the way of outside help available now or in the near future. Until the housing collapse slows down, or the government steps in with some timely aid or assistance there is little more a homeowner trying to stop foreclosure in New Jersey can do except to wait it out and hope for the best, or do the smart thing and find help to stop foreclosure.
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Aug28th
Tuesday, August 28th, 2007
It was recently reported that foreclosures in New Mexico experienced a sharp increase this past May. What no one is willing to say however is whether the bottom is truly falling out or whether government officials have doubts about the reported data itself?
One surprising statistic is that for a state with one of the lowest population densities New Mexico leads all other states with a rate of one property foreclosure for every 554 households. With the national average of one foreclosure for every 1,853 households New Mexico is checking in at three times this average.
Needless to say there is a growing concern among lenders and officials that the worst may be yet to come with thousands of adjustable rate mortgage loans yet to hit their reset periods, which many borrowers took advantage of and leveraged themselves to the hilt when they purchased or refinanced their homes.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
This May there were a reported 1,409 properties in foreclosure. This is a blistering pace since only 146 were reported in April, and 359 in March. One surprising statistic is one of the smallest New Mexico counties in land mass,Bernalillo County, reported 1313 properties in foreclosure which accounted for 93% of the total for the entire state during that time frame.
In fact Bernalillo County led the entire country in foreclosure rate. What happens once a homeowner falls into default on their mortgage loan in New Mexico? Like all other states the laws governing foreclosures are clear and decisive.
New Mexico Foreclosure Laws Judicial foreclosures are the norm in New Mexico, with non-judicial foreclosures a seldom used process by lenders for residential mortgages. The process in New Mexico is similar to that across the country where lenders appeal to the court for a final judgment of foreclosure.
New Mexico law requires that a foreclosure sale must be advertised at least four weeks in advance of any sale and sales usually take four months after final judgment for foreclosure is granted. The law also allows for a deficiency judgment where the lender may still hold the borrower liable for deficit amount when a property in foreclosure is sold at a public sale for less than the loan amount.The period of processing of a foreclosure in New Mexico is 180 days. If the borrower does not respond within that period the court starts foreclosure proceedings and the property is auctioned. State law allows a borrower to stop foreclosure in New Mexico at any time prior to the sale of the home. The court may then decide to halt the proceedings if the borrower is able to pay back all back mortgage payments, late fees, and penalties if any.The foreclosure situation in New Mexico remains unsettled, and there is speculation that the numbers were under-reported over the past few months. There is some belief that since interest rates are likely to remain flat for the rest of the year the number of foreclosures may plateau. This is not great news, but it is some small comfort for the state setting the record for the highest foreclosure rate in 2007.
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