A recent report from RealtyTrac confirms that an increasingly larger number of homes in the foreclosure process actually have positive equity. According to the report, the share of foreclosures with positive equity in the first quarter reached 35 percent, up from 31 percent in the previous quarter and 24 percent in the third quarter of 2013. This percentage includes borrowers who have defaulted on their loans or are in some other stage of the foreclosure process but their homes have not been taken over by the banks, yet.
The reason behind this can be attributed to timing. Once a foreclosure is initiated, it can sometimes take years to complete the process. As we have seen, a lot can happen to housing prices in a couple of years. Home prices have risen dramatically in the past couple of years; some that are still stuck in the foreclosure process have regained their equity.
Homeowners may be unaware of this, either because they have moved or have stopped keeping tabs on their home’s property value. A high-percentage of all homes in the foreclosure process are vacant. RealtyTrac has not cross-referenced to see how many of the vacant ones have positive equity.
Real estate experts agree that paying attention to home values can make all the difference. In certain cases, struggling borrowers may be able to hang onto their homes by refinancing. The latest numbers reveal 9.3 million homes, representing 19 percent of all properties with a mortgage, were seriously underwater in the fourth quarter. Florida has the second highest percentage of seriously underwater properties at 31%. Nevada has the highest share of underwater properties at 34%.
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Choosing the right attorney can make the difference between whether or not you can keep your home. A well-qualified Miami foreclosure defense attorney will not only help you keep your home, but they will be able to negotiate a loan that has payments you can afford. Miami foreclosure defense attorney Timothy Kingcade has helped many facing foreclosure alleviate their stress by letting them stay in their homes for at least another year, allowing them to re-organize their lives. If you have any questions on the topic of foreclosure please feel free to contact me at (305) 285-9100. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade & Garcia website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.