Once again the foreclosure activity for Chicago has been reported by RealtyTrac and it shows a continued subdued level of activity. That’s on a relative basis. Relative to 2009 and 2010, which were pretty awful. See the graph at the bottom of this post.
So you would think that’s good news but RealtyTrac voices a cautionary note regarding the national picture:
Processing and procedural delays are pushing foreclosures further and further out – we estimate that as many as 1 million foreclosure actions that should have taken place in 2011 will now happen in 2012, or perhaps even later. This casts an ominous shadow over the housing market, where recovery is unlikely to happen until the current and forthcoming inventory of distressed properties can be whittled down to a manageable number.
But in order for this statement to be true it must also be true that the foreclosure delays are greater now than in the past. Well, I guess that’s possible since the lenders have been under pressure recently to tighten up their process after the earlier scandal. I’m willing to assume for the time being that RealtyTrac knows what they are talking about.
