Foreclosures in Florida Most Persistent in the South

Foreclosures in Florida are still more persistent in the southern parts of the state than in other areas of Florida, particularly in the counties of Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and Broward.

Foreclosure filings in South Florida have been contributing substantially to the top ranking of Florida in charts of foreclosures by state. In the most recent report on nationwide foreclosure postings released by a major real estate research entity, Florida still ranked third in foreclosure rate.

In May, more than 17,000 units entered foreclosed homes at auctions in Florida, which accounted for about 34.39 percent of the almost 51,000 homes that entered foreclosure during the month. Of the nearly 40,000 units in preforeclosure, a substantial portion have been listed as  distressed properties on sale, as more troubled homeowners have realized the advantages of losing their homes through short sale than losing them through foreclosure.

Based on reports from a firm specializing in Florida condos, there were around 4,000 units in South Florida that have been repossessed by banks every month during the six-month period ended June this year, marking a staggering jump of 83 percent from the total last year. The 125-percent spike in lender repossessions in Miami-Dade during the same period pushed significantly the pace of foreclosures in Florida in the first half of the year. In Broward, the pace of increase in repossession was lower at 42 percent.

With the staggering rates of increases in the first six months in South Florida, it is expected that the total of lender repossessions for the year 2010 would reach 50,000 units, five times the 10,000 homes taken back by lenders in 2007.

Local analysts said that among the major reasons for the spike in bank repossessions in South Florida are the online auction systems launched by counties to eliminate their backlog of foreclosure cases that are clogging their courts. According to county officials, these online auction systems have facilitated the completion of foreclosures in Florida and have helped cut county costs.   

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