Short Sales Shrink California Foreclosure Inventory

Short sales apparently are a significant contributor to the cancellations of foreclosures that are a major cause of California’s tight foreclosure inventories.

In November, total pre-foreclosures—properties in foreclosure that are Scheduled for Sale, and Bank Owned properties (REO)—fell 7.6 percent from the prior month and is down 31.8 percent compared to last year.  The significant decline in foreclosure inventory over the past year has contributed to what some are calling an “inventory crisis” of total homes for sale in the state, according to ForeclosureRadar.

The November foreclosure inventory shortage is partially due to the jump in California Foreclosure Cancellations. Cancellations were up 4.7 percent from the prior month, up 69.9 percent in the past two months and up 34.7 percent compared to last year. In taking a closer look at the reason for cancellations, it did not appear the majority were due to statutory time frames or filing errors, but were more likely due to short sales or successful loan modifications.

November 2012 California Notices of Default were down 19.9 percent from the prior month and down 51.5 percent compared to last year. November 2012 California Foreclosure Sales were down 14.8 percent from the prior month and down 30.3 percent compared to last year.