Where have all the foreclosures gone?

With home prices steadily rising for the last six years, foreclosure filings have become more and more rare because defaulting homeowners can often sell the home for more than they owe and pay off the mortgage… thus avoiding foreclosure.

As you can see in the chart below, the percent of distressed sales in Minneapolis-St. Paul has been falling each year since it peaked at 50% in 2011. In 2017, distressed sales made up only 4.2% of all closed sales.

The chart below from the Minneapolis Association of Realtors shows dramatically how foreclosure sales rose to be even higher than traditional sales at the beginning of 2011… now scraping the bottom as traditional sales soar.

Minnesota is one of the states with the lowest percent of foreclosure inventory as our real estate market has become steadily stronger since 2011.

While this is good for the market as a whole, it can be frustrating for buyers still looking for ‘fire sales’ on homes for sale. In this market, they are few and far between. A low number of foreclosures also contributes to the overall shortage of inventory.

HomesMSP Team – info@homesmsp.com