Banks repossessed a record number of homes in the U.S.
in the second quarter, but slowed new foreclosure notices to manage distressed
properties on the market, RealtyTrac reported today.
Job losses and wage cuts persist, making a sustained housing recovery elusive.
Banks took control of 269,962 properties in the second quarter, up 5 percent
from the first quarter and up 38 percent from the second quarter of 2009. The
real estate data company said repossessions in 2010 will likely top 1 million.
“The underlying conditions haven’t improved,” said Rick Sharga of RealtyTrac. The housing
market still deals with “unemployment, economic displacement in general and
still sits on over 5 million seriously delinquent loans that in all likelihood
will at some point go into foreclosure,” he noted, adding that this year some 3
million households are likely to get at least one foreclosure notice.In 2005, the last “normal” year in housing, Sharga said, about 530,000 households got aq foreclosure notice and banks took over some 100,000
houses.
California Home Prices Rise For Fifth Straight Month
Home sales posted their third largest increase on record in
May, due in part to first-time homebuyers who earned federal and state home
buyer tax credits, reported the California Association of Realtors recently.
May also marked the fifth month of double-
digit gains in the median price. Home sales increased 1.2
percent in May compared with the same period a year ago while the median price
of an existing home rose 23.2 percent.“With a 4.6 month supply of homes for sale, unsold inventory continues
to be well below the long-run average of seven months and will continue to
drive price appreciation over the next several months,” said Steve Goddard,
C.A.R. president.
San Diego Home Prices Now Nearly 20 Percent From Bottom
The median price of an existing, single-family detached home
in California
stood at $324,430 in May, the C.A.R. report noted. Comparatively, the San Diego median price was $391,410 in May, which
represents a 19.8 percent increase from the San Diego trough of $326,830 set in March of
2009. San DiegoCounty home prices peaked in May 2006
with a median price of $622,380. The May 2010 price is 37.1 percent below the
high mark. Statewide, Richmond
saw the greatest increase in the median home price—75 percent. Included in the
top 10, were San Diego’s Oceanside
at 47 percent and Lemon Grove at 53 percent.
