Foreclosed Properties Still Slow Coming on the Market

May 25, 2010

I checked this week with some of our agents who have been working with lenders for the past several years. For whatever reason the flow of properties from lenders has apparently slowed.

Since the news media is still writing about the large inventory of bank owned properties and of properties in the foreclosure process, it seems a bit strange that these agents are feeling a leveling off or slowdown of their lender listings.

If any of you readers have an insight into why this change in volume is occurring, I would be happy to hear from you. Just click the comment button and enter your opinions.

Here is some speculation on the subject:

1) When a property is scheduled for foreclosure sale on the courthouse steps or what ever public venue, investors are showing up to place bids. At these auctions, properties are often sold below the published bid amount.

2) Short sales are becoming very common and properties are sold prior to lenders actually foreclosing.

3. Or possibly lenders now have so many properties in inventory that they are slow to process and therefore slow to put the property out for sale on a MLS.

These are mere speculations. What do you think?