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Tampa Bay foreclosure filings in 2016 fell to lowest in a decade

 
Bank foreclosure signs were commonplace throughout the country -- and Tampa Bay in particular -- during the Great Recession. Last year, foreclosures fell to a 10-year low, new data shows.
[Getty Images]

Bank foreclosure signs were commonplace throughout the country -- and Tampa Bay in particular -- during the Great Recession. Last year, foreclosures fell to a 10-year low, new data shows. [Getty Images]
Published Jan. 19, 2017

As Tampa Bay home prices soared in 2016, foreclosure filings plunged to their lowest point in 10 years.

In Pinellas, just 2,985 homes went into foreclosure last year compared to more than 15,000 at the peak of the crisis in 2008-09.

In Hillsborough, lenders started foreclosing on 2,786 homes, almost 12,400 fewer than at the peak.

"I'm still getting assignments from banks but nothing to the same level I have in the past,'' said Peter Chicouris, a Pinellas County Realtor who has specialized in foreclosures. While bank-owned properties once accounted for more than 75 percent of his business, that's now down to about 40 percent.

Related coverage: Tampa Bay neighborhood ravaged by the housing crash makes its way back; but could it happen again?

In Tampa, agent Jamie Meloni said his revenue from foreclosures has dropped by 50 percent. "I still have foreclosures,'' he said, ''just not as many.''

The dramatic drop in new filings reflects a nationwide trend, with U.S. foreclosure activity also falling to a 10-year low, the parent company of RealtyTrac reported. And many of the filings were on loans originated years ago, indicating today's borrowers are in better shape financially.

In 2016, "banks continued to clear out legacy foreclosures from the last housing bubble, particularly in the final quarter of the year,'' said Daren Blomquist, senior vice president of ATTOM Data Solutions. "More than half of all foreclosures nationwide are on loans originated between 2004 and 2008, with a much higher share of legacy foreclosures in some markets.''

Chicouris, of Equity Realty, said he's noticed far fewer foreclosure auctions in Pinellas and Hillsborough as new filings drop. Investors, though, can get good deals on the houses and condos that do go to auction.

"You're still seeing banks let them go for considerably less than the judgment,'' Chicouris said. "Investors are keen to this information, and I'm starting to see local investment companies who are using this inventory for either rental or rehab. If they're re-listed, you usually see those coming on the (Multiple Listing Service) in three to six months.''

Fannie Mae, the government-supported mortgage giant, once offered thousands of Tampa Bay foreclosed properties for sale on its HomePath web site. But on Thursday, HomePath showed only 113 houses and condos available in all of Hillsborough County.

Previous coverage: Tampa Bay nonprofits to get first crack at foreclosed homes owned by Freddie and Fannie

With foreclosures down, Chicouris said his company decided to become a franchisee of a nationwide realty group, Weichert.

"We are in a transition period,'' he said. "We are increasing our marketing and concentrating on retail sales and customer service more because the bank-owned inventory has declined dramatically to the point many brokers are not even in the marketplace anymore.''

Although Tampa Bay's foreclosure filings have fallen to pre-crash levels, the four-county bay area still had among the nation's highest rates of foreclosures last year. Atlantic City, N.J., led with 3.4 percent of its homes in some stage of foreclosure while the Tampa Bay area ranked seventh at 1.38 percent.

Nationwide, less than 1 percent of homes had a foreclosure filing last year, the lowest since 2006. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay home prices rose about 10 percent in 2016, though they havde yet to return to pre-crash levels in some areas.

Contact Susan Taylor Martin at smartin@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8642. Follow @susanskate.