RealtyTrac comes out with national foreclosure data every month, and according to their latest report, Oregon ranked #5 for foreclosure rate with a 1 in every 357 homes being served with a foreclosure notice.
What does this mean for Salem Oregon home buyers and sellers?
Foreclosures are definitely running hotter in general. Foreclosure notices in January were down 20% from December of 2008, but are up 14% from January 2008.
- With the moratorium on foreclosure notices by Fannie Mae, I am afraid that these numbers are probably a little bit lower than they should be. I would expect that as Fannie starts to file these notices we will see a jump in foreclosures.
Now, foreclosures have always been a small part of our Salem Oregon real estate market (1/2-1%), but that is changing. There are currently 1729 active/pending listings on the WVMLS for Salem Oregon. 106, or 6.1%, of them are designated as short sales or foreclosures. That percentage is still very small compared to other parts of the country, but that has doubled since December of 2008.
There are some million-dollar properties on this list as well as total dumps (that is a technical real estate term by the way…) The face of foreclosure has changed, and the woes that started in other parts of the country, are seeping into Oregon.
Buyers need to understand that MOST homes are not short sales or foreclosures, but normal real estate transactions. Sellers need to be aware of this growing trend here, and be extra competitive. While real estate is local, if relocators can’t sell their homes across the country, they can’t buy here. 2009 is shaping up to be a challenging year here in the Salem Metro area.
If you want to receive the foreclosure or short sale listings as they hit the MLS, or the weekly foreclosure lists for Marion county…email me at melina@tomsonburnham.com
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