Bay State foreclosure activity jumped in September

IMAGE CREDIT/FREEDIGITALPHOTOS.NET

Write a Comment

By Rick Saia

Real estate foreclosure activity increased in Massachusetts for the seventh straight month in September, according to The Warren Group of Boston, although it said it’s confident the Bay State is not heading toward a market crisis.

Foreclosure petitions, which launch the foreclosure process, rose 68 percent year over year, to 734. But for the first nine months of the year, petitions are down 30 percent.

Meanwhile, the number of foreclosure deeds, which represent transfers of property to avoid foreclosure proceedings, jumped 5 percent. However, they’re down 9 percent for the year compared with 2013, according to The Warren Group data.

Cassidy Murphy, editorial director of The Warren Group, said that despite the “modest” rise in the foreclosure numbers, “I'm confident we are not headed for a crisis."

"Year to date, we see the numbers for auctions and deeds decreasing, and the percentage increases we have seen over the last few months in foreclosure starts are tapering off,” Murphy said. “I expect that trend to continue."

The numbers were up in Central Massachusetts as well. In Worcester County, foreclosure petitions rose 48 percent in September and are up 19 percent for the year. In Middlesex County, petitions rose 74 percent in September and are up 24 percent for the year.

(Image credit: Freedigitalphotos.net)