MHP News

(Note: Foreclosure Monitor is an effort by MHP to help public officials and community leaders determine how best to use their resources to help homeowners and neighborhoods hard-hit by foreclosure).

Latest report

Foreclosures up in 2012 but still far from peak of 2 years ago NEW

BOSTON, May 2, 2012 --- Foreclosure activity increased in Massachusetts during the first quarter of 2012, but the increase was not  enough to overcome the overall decline in foreclosure distress from its peak of two years ago. Foreclosure Monitor's analysis of data from The Warren Group showed that the number of Massachusetts foreclosure petitions in Feb. 2012 was 101 percent higher than Feb. 2011, an increase from 694 to 1,394 petitions. Despite the spike, the Feb. 2012 increase remained 34 percent below the Feb 2010 number of 2,122 petitions.

Archive: Past quarterly reports 

BOSTON ---  Every quarter, Foreclosure Monitor reports on foreclosure trends by community, zip code and census tract. Here are links to past reports: 2009. 2010. 2011.

Special reports

Special report: Interest in foreclosed properties weaker outside Boston 

BOSTON, Jan. 11, 2012 --- As lenders renew foreclosure activities, more than half of all properties in foreclosure are becoming bank-owned, indicating that despite  low interest rates, third-party buyers in Massachusetts have little appetite for foreclosed properties, especially outside of Boston.

All signs point to long recovery road 

BOSTON, June 13, 2011 --- Despite occasional dips in foreclosure activity like we had in February, Foreclosure Monitor's assessment of real estate data and economic trends indicates that foreclosures in Massachusetts will increase during 2011, there are still thousands of properties in the foreclosure pipeline and that we will not likely be in a full real estate recovery until 2014.

Distress tipping point: More in suburbs, rural areas  

BOSTON, Nov. 9, 2010 ---The  movement of distressed properties away from urban areas has reached a tipping point as there is now more distress in the suburbs and rural communities. This report includes a map on how the problem has spread in Worcester County.

3-family report: Market showing an appetite 

BOSTON, June 17, 2010 --- Known as the problem child in the Massachusetts real estate market, Foreclosure Monitor finds that 3-family properties are selling and that investor interest could mean that we're headed toward a repeat of the boom-bust cycle. 

Special report: Shadow inventory  

BOSTON, March 17, 2010 --- In March, Foreclosure Monitor tried to sift through conflicting reports about recovery and a second wave of foreclosures by trying to estimate the size and potential impact of this so-called shadow inventory. By analyzing properties that comprise this shadow inventory - delinquencies, petitions, and bank-owned properties, one get a handle on how big our problem could be and which communities are at risk of a second foreclosure wave. MORE

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