New York’s Foreclosure Data Inaccurate?

The data of foreclosure filings obtained in New York, counting that of Erie County are said to be incomplete. This is the danger of depending only on one research firm, which has not perfected yet the act of data collection.

Based on the data acquired by RealtyTrac, Erie County, which is in the top eight counties that have high foreclosure levels in New York, foreclosure filings has rose 242.7 percent, putting Erie County into number four.

According to the data, included in the list of 100 metropolitan areas mostly influenced by foreclosures nationwide are the following: Buffalo, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Albany, and Syracuse. Even now, Buffalo is in the depth of some economic, labor, and vacant property issues.

This trend continually gives a negative impact on borrowers, having a hard time keeping pace with their mortgages. However, this is said to be untrue.

Lawyers from the Western New York Law Center say that foreclosure filings has actually dropped from 727 to 539 in last year’s third quarter, and to 593 in the second.

The issue lies on how data is collected and what type RealtyTrac collects. Its data is from three sources: “lis pendens” or the primary filings of foreclosures in court, “notices of sale”, and lenders records from bank-owned properties.

The firm collects “lis pendens” from 35 countries only instead of 62. Until now, it fails to monitor Erie County’s. Plus it only has “notices of sale” for only 51 counties in New York. This has resulted to overstated growth and understated foreclosure levels in Erie County during the previous years.

Same problem occurs in others states but the firm has admitted the limitations of their data. But statewide data can be more dependable.

With the signing of the lending reform bill in August, the number of foreclosures has dropped. Lenders help homeowners avoid foreclosures but there is still a need to come up with systemic and sustainable load modifications to further prevent foreclosures.

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