The Foreclosure Report

North Texas Foreclosures 'Spiral Upward'

The Star Telegram reports on the foreclosure situation in the Dallas/Ft Worth area. "The number of Tarrant County homeowners in financial trouble continues to spiral upward, with no end in sight. There are 899 Tarrant County homes posted for the January foreclosure sale, up 5.9 percent from the 849 postings a year ago."

"The numbers are high and they don't appear to be coming down, said Jim Brown, who has been compiling a foreclosure list for more than 30 years. 'To me, it will be in the 900 to 1,000 range at least for the next several months,' he said."

"Interest rates have been generally climbing since September, which could be adding financial strain to strapped borrowers with adjustable-rate mortgages. 'Anyone who is looking at an interest-only or adjustable-rate mortgage has seen their payments go up significantly in the last six months,' said Rick Sharga."

"The number of Tarrant County homes facing foreclosure is 78 percent higher than in January 2002. Other North Texas counties are also seeing increases in foreclosure postings, according to the service. Dallas has 1,350 properties facing auction in January, up 4 percent from a year ago. Denton County has 291 homes posted, 21 percent more than January 2004."

"Part of the reason may be how quickly lenders foreclose on a home in Texas, Sharga said. It can take as little as one month in Texas, compared with more than a year in New York."

posted by Ben Jones @ 6:39 AM