State House News Service
Lenders in Massachusetts initiated 6.7 percent fewer foreclosures last month than in September 2009, but completed foreclosures passed the 10,000 mark for the year, jumped more than 26 percent over-the-year, and were up for the ninth straight month, according to data released last Thursday morning.
There were 890 completed foreclosures recorded last month, the first time since February that completed foreclosures totaled less than 1,000, according to the Warren Group. Year-to-date, completed foreclosures total 10,777 and are up 58 percent. In September, lenders filed 2,358 foreclosure petitions — the first step in the foreclosure process — and nearly 21,000 petitions have been filed year-to-date in Massachusetts, down 3.1 percent from the same period in 2009.
In a statement, Warren Group CEO Timothy Warren Jr. said, “We saw more moderate activity in September, with petitions declining by almost 7 percent from one year ago and down 23 percent from the preceding month of August. Earlier this year, petitions were rising at a dramatic clip, including months when the increases were 80 percent to 121 percent.” He added: “We will have to wait until the October statistics are tabulated to see the impact from Bank of America’s decision to halt foreclosures in Massachusetts, pending a review of its paperwork and procedures. From what we can see now, Bank of America is involved in about 2,000 pending foreclosure cases in the Bay State.”
