States Face Backlog Of Foreclosures

Despite recent reports of the number of foreclosures slowing around the country, the fact remains that there are hundreds of thousands still in the process waiting to be completed. Several states are still wading through thousands of unfinished foreclosures after being delayed by the investigations of unlawful foreclosure practices.

Unfinished Business

While the $26 billion foreclosure settlement deal was in its initial stages of investigation and discovery, many states had to put their foreclosure processes on hold.  Now that an agreement has been made many of these states are now faced with the problem of handling thousands of backlogged proceedings. Florida and New Jersey top the charts with the highest inventory of foreclosed homes in the nation, both of which are left with 100,000 or more properties that still need completion.

Banks will begin resuming the foreclosure process and sale of foreclosed homes as early as next week. Although many states have seen a significant reduction in foreclosures over the last year, many homeowners are still in limbo waiting for a final decision to be made. New Jersey has the second-longest average foreclosure time, nearing 964 days. The nationwide average is just shy of one year, at 348 days. Now that investigations are over, homeowners should be aware that their time left in the home is expected to dwindle much faster than in months past.