There were thousands of Massachusetts foreclosure homes that were up for grabs in 2007. The number was overwhelming at 7,563 homes, which was almost three times the foreclosure rate in 2006. Massachusetts faced a severe crisis and this is a new record of sorts because so many real estate foreclosures had not been seen since the early 1990’s.
There are several housing analysts who feel that 2008 is going to be even worse and the housing prices might see a fall through the year. One of the reasons for the fall in housing prices can be contributed to the sale of Massachusetts foreclosures at a discounted price. The fact of the matter is that such a high rate of foreclosure has been created by increasingly high rates of interest applied to the monthly mortgage payments.
In 2008, the Massachusetts lending industry is being scrutinized under the microscope and there is an increasing pressure on the industry to help borrowers/existing homeowners to avoid real estate foreclosures. The only option that the Massachusetts lending industry has is a reduction plan on the monthly payments for those borrowers who are unable to meet the current payment amount. According to Sheila Bair, the head of Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the efforts made by the industry is moving at a very slow pace.
Sheila Bair feels that the pace should be faster and the sooner this can be done, the better it will be for the Massachusetts borrowers. There has been a rise in the number of repossessed homes in different counties including Boston, Portland, Madison, Dover, Houlton, Somerville and Newton.
According to a report created by the Mortgage Bankers Association in Massachusetts, mortgage companies have offered help to as many as 53,600 borrowers in an effort to reduce the number of Massachusetts foreclosure homes. These borrowers were provided an option to receive a reduction in their monthly mortgage payments. This is the only option that they have to handle any future Massachusetts foreclosures but the question is: is this enough?
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