Deals for bank-owned and distressed properties rose to 24 percent of total home sales from 20 percent in the third quarter, according to RealtyTrac Inc. The transactions fell from 26 percent a year earlier, the Irvine, California-based data seller said today in a statement.

“We expect to see foreclosure-related sales increase in 2012, particularly pre-foreclosure sales,” Chief Executive Officer Bandon Moore said in the statement.

Banks may “aggressively” resume unloading distressed property after an 18-month delay brought on by federal and state legal probes into flawed foreclosure paperwork and documentation, Moore said. The fourth quarter showed lenders turning to short sales as a “better option” than holding a house whose borrower doesn’t make any payments, he said.

The number of short sales jumped 15 percent from the fourth quarter of 2010 while purchases of bank-owned houses fell 12 percent, according to RealtyTrac. Pre-foreclosure deals outnumbered bank-owned sales in the “bellwether” cities of Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix, Moore said.

“That trend will likely show up in more local markets in 2012,” he said.

A total of 88,303 pre-foreclosure properties sold in the fourth quarter, making up 10 percent of all transactions.

Bank Settlement

Five of the top U.S. mortgage lenders last month reached settlements worth more than $25 billion with the federal government and all 50 states following investigations into abusive foreclosure practices. The lenders agreed to provide $17 billion in mortgage forgiveness programs, $3 billion in refinancing and cash payments to about 750,000 borrowers who lost their homes.

For the full year, purchases of foreclosures and distressed houses totaled 907,138, down 2 percent from 2010 and accounting for 23 percent of all home sales, RealtyTrac said. There were 204,080 such deals in the fourth quarter, down 8 percent from the previous three months and 2 percent from a year earlier.

Bank-owned (HOMFREO) home sales totaled 115,777 in the fourth quarter and sold for an average $164,944, little changed from the third quarter and down 5 percent from a year earlier, RealtyTrac said. The price represents an average discount of 29 percent compared with non-foreclosure properties, down from 34 percent in the third quarter and 35 percent a year earlier.

Pre-foreclosure homes sold for an average $184,221 in the fourth quarter, down 3 percent from the previous three months and 11 percent from a year earlier. The 88,303 properties sold at an average 21 percent discount relative to non-distressed houses.

RealtyTrac sells default data from more than 2,200 counties representing 90 percent of the U.S.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dan Levy in San Francisco at dlevy13@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Taub at dtaub@bloomberg.net

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-01/foreclosures-rise-to-24-of-u-s-home-purchases-as-short-sales-increase.html

• Săn nhà phố mặt tiền cho thuê tại Sài Gòn   (2016-04-25 13:23:45)
• Đề xuất Tp.HCM có đặc khu kinh tế, được thuê đất 99 năm   (2015-12-11 02:39:26)
• Australand Rises as It Agrees to Open Books to Bidder Stockland   (2014-05-30 09:34:36)
• Toll Brothers Earnings Climb After Builder Raises Prices   (2014-05-29 09:40:34)
• Genworth Says Profit to Jump 29% at Australia Unit   (2014-04-08 08:54:25)
• Billionaire Sy to Accelerate Mall Expansion in China   (2014-04-04 09:48:30)
• Gains in Services Signal Rebound Ahead for Growth: Economy   (2014-04-04 09:48:01)
• ‘Cement Shen’ Detained Spurs Scavenging as China Developer Fails   (2014-03-31 10:49:37)
• China’s Urbanization Loses Momentum as Growth Slows   (2014-03-25 13:19:37)
• Dying Memphis Neighborhood Foretells Next U.S. Crisis: Mortgages   (2014-03-22 09:30:27)