California Foreclosures Down
February 12, 2003
La Jolla, CA.--The number of California homes going into
foreclosure declined somewhat last year, the result of strong
demand for housing and steadily rising home values.
Lending institutions started foreclosure proceedings on
78,784 homeowners in 2002. That was down 2.7 percent from 81,003
for 2001, according to DataQuick Information Systems.
Last year's number was the lowest DataQuick has in its
default statistics, which go back to 1992. Default activity
peaked in 1996 when 162,597 homes went into foreclosure. The
numbers count Notices of Default, the first step of the formal
foreclosure process.
"There's always a base level of foreclosure activity. California's numbers are actually a bit low right now and we
expect them to rebound a bit as appreciation rates ease back. The
numbers will also go up because of some of the newer and riskier
so-called 'subprime' loans," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick
president.
That rising trend is already apparent in some of the
regional numbers. Foreclosure activity in Southern California
fell 8.5 percent from 48,017 in 2001 to 43,921 last year as home
prices went up 16.5 percent from $231,000 to $269,000. Default
activity in the Bay Area increased 23.0 percent from 10,567 to
12,993 as the median sales price increased 7.2 percent from
$377,000 to $404,000. Bay Area homes are still much less likely
to go into foreclosure than are homes in the rest of the state.
DataQuick, a subsidiary of Vancouver-based MacDonald
Dettwiler and Associates, monitors real estate activity
nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational
institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title
companies and industry analysts.
Eighty percent of the homeowners who found themselves in
default were able to stop the foreclosure process by bringing
their mortgage payments current, or by selling their home and
paying the mortgage off. In the mid 1990s only half of all
distressed homeowners were able to do that.
While foreclosure properties tugged property values down
almost ten percent in some areas seven years ago, the effect on
today's market is negligible, DataQuick reported.
In addition to the decline in foreclosures, there is
unremarkable activity among other market stress indicators
including loan-to-value ratios, seller financing and other
unconventional financing usage, shifts in market mix, turnover
rates and non-owner occupancy rates, DataQuick reported.
Tulare, Kern and Fresno counties had the highest relative
foreclosure rates, while Marin and San Francisco counties had the
lowest, DataQuick reported.
Notices of Default
recorded on residential property
in the year 2002
|
County |
2001 |
2002 |
%Chg |
| Los Angeles |
24,531 |
22,113 |
-9.9% |
|
Orange County |
3,660 |
3,456 |
-5.6% |
|
San Diego |
3,412 |
3,654 |
7.1% |
|
Riverside |
6,378 |
6,092 |
-4.5% |
|
San Bernardino |
8,640 |
7,214 |
-16.5% |
|
Ventura |
1,395 |
1,393 |
-0.2% |
|
SoCal Total |
48,017 |
43,921 |
-8.5% |
|
San Francisco |
470 |
504 |
7.3% |
|
Alameda |
2,662 |
3,193 |
20.0% |
|
Contra Costa |
2,484 |
2,953 |
18.9% |
|
Santa Clara |
2,046 |
2,960 |
44.7% |
|
San Mateo |
746 |
965 |
29.3% |
|
Marin |
267 |
341 |
27.7% |
|
Solano |
1,169 |
1,208 |
3.4% |
|
Sonoma |
541 |
684 |
26.3% |
|
Napa |
182 |
184 |
1.2% |
|
Bay Area Total |
10,567 |
12,993 |
23.0% |
|
Santa Cruz |
263 |
348 |
32.0% |
|
Santa Barbara |
597 |
572 |
-4.1% |
|
San Luis Obispo |
336 |
345 |
2.8% |
|
Monterey |
428 |
414 |
-3.4% |
|
Coast Total |
1,624 |
1,679 |
3.4% |
|
Sacramento |
4,832 |
4,229 |
-12.5% |
|
San Joaquin |
2,277 |
2,870 |
26.0% |
|
Placer |
666 |
802 |
20.4% |
|
Kern |
3,120 |
2,779 |
-10.9% |
|
Fresno |
3,849 |
3,545 |
-7.9% |
|
Madera |
630 |
529 |
-16.0% |
|
Merced |
672 |
640 |
-4.7% |
|
Tulare |
2,566 |
2,395 |
-6.7% |
|
Yolo |
354 |
345 |
-2.3% |
|
El Dorado |
290 |
368 |
27.1% |
|
Stanislaus |
1,539 |
1,689 |
9.7% |
|
Inland Total |
20,795 |
20,191 |
-2.9% |
|
All California |
81,003 |
78,784 |
-2.7% |
|
|
Source: DataQuick Information Systems
Media Inquiries: John Karevoll (909)867-9534