Nevada has recently displayed one of the highest increases in residential foreclosures. The RJ said the number of loans in foreclosure at the end of March was more than 1%. Many of those loans were subprime, a sector that increased from 2.7% to 3.2% in foreclosure.
Nevada, California, Florida, and Arizona are responsible for much of the increase. "Without these four states, foreclosure stats would have declined (nationally)," Mortgage Bankers Association Doug Duncan said. Foreclosures in Nevada and the other three states "are heavily influenced by speculators who are walking away from properties now that home prices have started to fall in areas of those states," Duncan said.
Many investors are dumping properties where they can to avoid foreclosure. They are not able to compete with the high number of listings on the market. They have simply run out of time and they don't see much if any appreciation so the next 12 months look bleak to them. Savvy investors have been picking some of these properties up at auction or as the homes sell short.
