2007 Statistics

• Petitions to foreclose totaled 29,607 petitions, up 55% from 2006.
• Foreclosures totaled 7,653, up 145% from 2006 (3,130) and the highest number since the mid-1990s. 
• Just under half of foreclosures in 2006 and 2007 involved owners with a subprime loan (including those who refinanced into a subprime). 

2008 Massachusetts Foreclosure Statistics

• Petitions to foreclose in 2008 totaled 21,804, down 26% from 2007.

• A “right to cure” law that went into effect on May 1, 2008 with the goal of helping borrowers resolve delinquencies by giving them more time played a role in the decline. It requires lenders intending to file a petition to notify borrowers that they have 90 days to cure the default and give them lender and counseling contact information.  At least initially, most lenders appeared to wait until the 90 day cure period expired before filing, resulting in a big drop in filings between May and August.  Monthly filing have continued to remain below 2-3,000 petitions a month experienced before May 1.

• Foreclosure deeds totaled 12,430, up 62% from 2007 and up 397% from 2006 (3130). Click here for a chart detailing foreclosure activity from 2005-2008.

• Foreclosures continue to disproportionately affect multi-family properties (2+ units), compared to single family homes and condominiums.  A National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) study found that multi-family properties accounted for 34% of the properties and 58% of the units foreclosed upon statewide between January 2007 and March 2008, though accounting for only about 11% of the state’s housing stock, and noted that their share of foreclosures was rising.  A more recent study confirms this, finding that multifamily properties accounted for 66% of total units with foreclosure petitions between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2008.  Overall, the NLIHC study estimated that rental units made up 44% of all units foreclosed upon in that period.

2009 Massachusetts Foreclosure Statistics

• 7,707 foreclosure deeds were recorded in Massachusetts through October 2009, representing a 27.3% decline from the 10,603 completed foreclosures during the same period in 2008.
• 15,273 auction announcements so far in 2009, down 9.8% compared to 16,930 in 2008.
• According to The Warren Group, a number of factors have helped temper foreclosure activity in Massachusetts, including federal efforts to offer loan modifications to trouble borrowers and a Massachusetts Land Court decision forcing some lenders to hold back on foreclosure proceedings until proper mortgage assignments have been made.

More Massachusetts Statistics:

The Massachusetts Housing Partnership produces a quarterly Foreclosure Monitor, an effort by MHP to help public officials and community leaders determine how best to use their resources to help homeowners and neighborhoods hard-hit by foreclosure. Using data from The Warren Group and other sources, Foreclosure Monitor is focused on what's happening in the Massachusetts real estate market, how we compare to other states, where foreclosures are happening and what types of properties are being hard hit.

Profile of Foreclosures
A 2007 study of foreclosures found:

• 53% involved properties purchased with no money down (40%) or less than 5% down.
• 45% of properties were owned less than 3 years (including the 6+ months it took to foreclose).
45% involved subprime loans including 30% who initially purchased their homes with subprime loans and another 15% purchased with a prime loan and later refinanced into a subprime loan; the remaining 55% had prime mortgages. 28% of the foreclosed properties (2006-2007) were multi-family (2+ units), 58% were single family homes and 13% were condominiums.
• Interest resets were not a major contributor to foreclosures, as most borrowers with adjustable rate mortgages who went into default did so before their reset.

Additional Statistics:

• Foreclosures are hurting renters as well as owners, due to disproportionately high rates of foreclosure on multifamily buildings. While 2-4 unit properties make up only 10% of the state’s housing stock, they accounted for almost 30% of foreclosures in 2007.  
•  Statewide, multifamily properties represented 34% of the properties that began foreclosure proceedings between January 2007 and March 2008 (and 58% of the units in those properties).   Owners of multifamily properties are far more likely to have purchased or refinanced with a subprime loan than owners of single family homes or condos and are defaulting much more quickly.
• Foreclosures have been disproportionately concentrated in low and moderate income neighborhoods (zip code areas with median incomes <80% of the state median).  In 2007,  44% of all foreclosed properties were in low and moderate income areas (though these areas are home to only 17% of all mortgaged properties) and one quarter (25.6%) were in areas with high levels of minority residents (though home to only 15% of all mortgaged properties).

MHP's Massachusetts Foreclosure Monitor
A quarterly report for public officials and community leaders working to address the foreclosure crisis in Massachusetts.

Third Quarter 2008

January 2009