Foreclosure auction sales fall to 42-month low

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Foreclosure auction sales fall to 42-month low

Foreclosure sales at auction dropped to a 42-month low in Colorado’s metropolitan counties during October. According to a report released Wednesday by the Colorado Division of Housing, foreclosure auction sales in Colorado’s metropolitan counties were down 28.3 percent from October 2010 to October of this year. Sales fell from October 2010’s total of 1,308 to 938 sales during October of this year.

New foreclosure filings also fell with total filings dropping 23.2 percent from 3,059 filings in October 2010 to 2,350 filings in October of this year.

From September 2011 to October 2011, foreclosure filings fell 3.3 percent, and foreclosure sales at auction fell 16.5 percent.

Year-to-date through October, foreclosure auction sales were down 22.6 percent, falling from 2010’s ten-month total of 17,533 to 13,564 during the same period this year. Foreclosure filings were down 29.3 percent when comparing the same periods. There were 21,260 filings year-to-date this year, and 30,050 filings during the same period last year.

“October’s auction sales fell off more than expected, and it’s pretty clear at this point that there’s a well-established downward trend now in place,” said Ryan McMaken, a spokesman with the Colorado Division of Housing. “We’re cautiously optimistic that the trend will continue, but we’re waiting to see how things look after homeowners begin to pay off holiday bills early next year.”

Year-to-date through October, the counties with the largest decreases in foreclosure auction sales, year-over-year, were Adams County and Broomfield County, where sales decreased by 31.3 percent and 42.3 percent, respectively. Pueblo County reported the smallest decline in auction sales with a decrease of 10.2 percent from the first ten months of 2010 to the same period this year. All counties surveyed reported year-over-year decreases in foreclosure auction sales.

The county with the highest rate of foreclosure sales during October was Pueblo County with a rate of 950 households per foreclosure sale. Arapahoe County came in second with 1,183 households per foreclosure sale. The lowest rate was found in Boulder County where there were 3,988 households per foreclosure sale.

The Division of Housing’s monthly foreclosure report surveys foreclosure activity in the twelve largest counties of Colorado. The report is a supplement to the Division’s quarterly foreclosure report that includes all counties in Colorado.