California Foreclosures Down
May 5, 2003
La Jolla, CA.--The number of California homes going into
foreclosure declined during the first three months of the year,
the result of strong demand for housing and steadily rising home
values, a real estate information service reported.
Lending institutions started foreclosure proceedings on
20,093 homeowners during the January-to-March period. That was up
4.5 percent from 19,225 for the prior quarter and down 14.2
percent from 23,406 for last year's first quarter, according to
DataQuick Information Systems.
An increase from fourth quarter to first quarter is normal
for the season. The January-to-March total was the lowest for any
first quarter since 18,806 default notices were filed in 1992.
The peak occurred during first quarter 1996 when lenders started
foreclosure proceedings on 44,665 homeowners. The numbers count
Notices of Default, the first step of the formal foreclosure
process.
"Foreclosure activity is actually a bit low right now
relative to the number of loans at risk, and we expect defaults
to increase slightly throughout the rest of this year. If for no
other reason, there are simply more fresh home loans out there
than ever before," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.
Because of record home sales and record refinance activity,
lending institutions made 3,176,648 home loans totaling $626
billion last year, a record. Default rates are generally higher
for relatively new loans.
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 find themselves in
default are 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, Madera and Kern counties had the highest relative
foreclosure rates, while Marin, Napa and Orange counties had the
lowest, DataQuick reported.
Notices of Default
recorded on residential property
|
County |
1Q2002 |
1Q2003 |
%Chg |
| Los Angeles |
6,730 |
5,135 |
-23.7% |
|
Orange County |
1,092 |
902 |
-17.4% |
|
San Diego |
1,070 |
1,000 |
-6.5% |
|
Riverside |
1,785 |
1,596 |
-10.6% |
|
San Bernardino |
2,197 |
1,828 |
-16.8% |
|
Ventura |
453 |
291 |
-35.8% |
|
So Cal Total |
13,327 |
10,752 |
-19.3% |
|
San Francisco |
146 |
148 |
1.4% |
|
Alameda |
862 |
876 |
1.6% |
|
Contra Costa |
881 |
894 |
1.4% |
|
Santa Clara |
866 |
937 |
8.2% |
|
San Mateo |
302 |
236 |
-21.8% |
|
Marin |
84 |
86 |
2.3% |
|
Solano |
343 |
350 |
2.1% |
|
Sonoma |
211 |
203 |
-4.1% |
|
Napa |
47 |
33 |
-28.6% |
|
Bay Area Total |
3,741 |
3,762 |
0.6% |
|
Santa Cruz |
97 |
93 |
-3.7% |
|
Santa Barbara |
151 |
151 |
0.0% |
|
San Luis Obispo |
121 |
131 |
7.8% |
|
Monterey |
135 |
135 |
0.0% |
|
Coast Total |
504 |
510 |
1.2% |
|
Sacramento |
1,196 |
1,024 |
-14.4% |
|
San Joaquin |
726 |
844 |
16.3% |
|
Placer |
239 |
204 |
-14.7% |
|
Kern |
879 |
695 |
-20.9% |
|
Fresno |
1,051 |
777 |
-26.1% |
|
Madera |
157 |
125 |
-20.3% |
|
Merced |
178 |
202 |
13.5% |
|
Tulare |
719 |
680 |
-5.4% |
|
Yolo |
94 |
75 |
-20.6% |
|
El Dorado |
102 |
83 |
-19.1% |
|
Stanislaus |
495 |
361 |
-27.0% |
|
Inland Total |
5,835 |
5,069 |
-13.1% |
|
All California |
23,406 |
20,093 |
-14.2% |
|
|
Source: DataQuick Information Systems
Media Inquiries: John Karevoll (909)867-9534