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Are RealtyTrac's Foreclosure #'s Real?

By
Real Estate Agent with Clever Investor, LLC

 

 

Is RealtyTrac Overstating Foreclosures?

With Over 21,900 filed Notice of Defaults (ACTUAL NOD's AS OF 10/26/07) in Maricopa County there is no doubt Arizona has many troubled homeowners.  The media loves a good story and normally a good story involves tragedy, heartache, and turmoil.  Should we believe the doom and gloom of the papers, or is it just their way of promoting the hype?

RealtyTrac, ranked the 3rd largest real estate site by MediaMatrix and one of the largest databases of foreclosure information reported as of JULY 2007 (4 months ago!) that number should be 27,515.  Now, I have never been that great at math, but that is a rather large difference.  Is this a bad thing or a good thing? 

As an investor, the bad press actually puts more money in my pocket, and as a Realtor it helps me get my clients to strategically price their properties without having to explain to them why last years appraisal means squat.  So in the end, I suppose I should thank the powers that be at RealtyTrac and the newspapers for outstanding reporting!  Just a thought....what's yours?

Comments (3)

Anonymous
Steele V. Propp

I have worked with RealtyTrac as an agent as well as investor for some three years.  Hate to say it , but at least in my state of Minnesota, their numbers are some of the most inaccurate of all foreclosure data sites.

In the area of bank owned properties they are wrong here some 95% of the time.  And when reporting preforeclosures (NOD or NTS) they miss about 80% of the ones that are really out there.  It is sad but their computer system miscatagorizes many properties in my area (Twin Cities) or just plain doesn't have them.

Now as a lead generator for potential investor buyers, they do get lots of people signing up.  For a short period anyway.  And that is one reason I have stuck with them.  I get the local inquiries for two of my metro counties.  The hard part is letting these people know that the information on RealtyTrac is so inaccurate. 

What is very disappointing has been that I have contacted RealtyTrac about their errors many times and am totally ignored.

Steele V. Propp

Minneapolis, Mn

 

 

Oct 26, 2007 03:14 AM
#1
Brian Hoots
Real Living Speckman Realty, Inc. - Bourbonnais, IL
Cody, in my experience with Realtytrac they are very inaccurate.  and most of the info is incorrect and outdated.
Nov 05, 2007 11:06 AM
Cody Sperber
Clever Investor, LLC - Chandler, AZ
Real Estate Investing Education

I agree...Realty Trac is not as accurate as they should be!  Is there any other service out there that tracks national foreclosure data?

Dec 03, 2007 11:57 AM