Significant Drop in Denver House Reposession Rates

The total number of actual house reposession in Denver, Colorado dropped 48 percent in 2008. This decline in actual home foreclosures happened despite the 13 percent increase in Colorado?s foreclosure filings in the last quarter of the previous year.

Industry analysts attributed the drop in actual house reposession rates to the decision of national mortgage lending institutions to suspend foreclosures to allow them to work with troubled homeowners on reducing interest rates and fees to give them a chance to remain in their homes.

However, uncertainties still prevail as to whether the massive layoffs sweeping across Colorado will result to a larger increase in foreclosure filings.
According to Division of Housing director Kathi Williams, unemployment and future adjustable mortgage resets are factors that may trigger foreclosures to jump up again. She added that the number of foreclosure properties in Colorado is stabilizing while those in other states are rising.

The stabilization of foreclosure rates in Colorado was experienced during the first quarter of 2009. Foreclosures across the state dropped by 26 percent compared with figures for the same period the previous year. According to the Division of Housing, actual foreclosures also dropped 14 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the previous year?s last quarter.

However, new foreclosure filings were reported to increase to 10,745 from January to March of this year as compared to 9,481 in the last quarter of 2008. Denver registered the largest decline in the number of house reposession compared to Arapahoe, Adams and Weld counties.
Meanwhile, Representative Mark Ferrandino of Denver has authored a bill that would implement a 90-day delay on foreclosures for eligible homeowners. Ferrandino is not hoping that the moratorium will help reduce new foreclosure filings. But he is hopeful that the bill will reduce the number of actual house reposession.

With the 26 percent decline in foreclosures, Ferrandino believes that it is not enough to revive the real estate market. He claims that foreclosure rates are still at historic highs and there is always fear for a second wave of house reposession in the residential and commercial market.

The bill is expected to be signed into law by Governor Bill Ritter on June 5.

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