Jul 3, 2008

San Fernando Valley foreclosures soar 242%

Foreclosures skyrocketed 242 percent across the San Fernando Valley during May amid continued weak sales, factors that pushed prices down to levels not seen in four years, according to two reports released Thursday.

And while the numbers remain grim, some experts suggest that better days are ahead.

Foreclosures totaled 673 last month, compared with 202 a year ago and 608 in April, said the San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center at California State University, Northridge.

With a glut of homes on the market, the median price of a single-family house dropped 27 percent - from $660,000 in May 2007 to $485,000 last month. The April median was $505,000.

Center Director Daniel Blake said the Northeast Valley was hit especially hard, with a 35 percent slide, to $345,000. The Central Valley plunged nearly 30 percent, to $390,000, while the Northwest Valley dropped 29 percent, to $467,000.

The Burbank and Glendale areas fared the best, with a 20 percent year-to-year decline taking the median to $619,500.

Sales of existing homes edged up from 960 in April to 1,047.

"Clearly, each month more and more mortgages have been funded," Blake said. "That sort of suggests some relief in that area," he said. "That's good news."

Still, he noted last month's sales were some 27 percent below the 1,434 transactions recorded in May 2007 and the lowest for any May since sales tracking began in 1988.
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