At the height of the pandemic, given the nature and number of shutdowns and restrictions to try and control the spread of the virus, there were many predictions about an incoming wave of foreclosures. Some buyers read this as an opportunity…that if they held out long enough they may be able to scoop up a home at a price below competing properties. That prediction, however, has just not come true. Check out the article below from Florida Realtors to give you some perspective on just how low the foreclosure inventory is, and how current predictions don’t foresee the foreclosure numbers rising significantly over the coming months.
Some highlights from the article:
- There were foreclosure filings on 151,153 properties nationwide in 2021, a 29% drop from 2020
- Florida recorded foreclosures on 19,627 properties, an 8% drop from 2020. They represented 0.21% of all Florida properties.
- Metro Orlando, including Orange, Osceola, Lake and Seminole counties, saw fewer than 2,000 foreclosure filings – 5% less than 2020 and down 68% from 2019.
- “I think there will be a nominal rise [in foreclosures] this year,” said Orlando foreclosure attorney Steven Kramer. “I don’t think it will be a big swing.”
- Foreclosure auctions did jump in the fall after the moratorium ended last September. September and October both saw more than 200, as opposed to 167 in August and 80 in July.
- Orlando only had 439 distressed sales last year, which includes bank-owned properties and short sales, a 51% drop from 2020
For the full article click here.