Have the foreclosures gone away, or just been delayed for a few years by the Homeowners’ Bill of Rights?
The timing of the market rise in late 2012 to 2013 was suspiciously coincident with that law coming into force. But banks will adapt, and quite a few mortgages that are HIGHER than peak values still exist, so there’s meat for the machine.
I’m still seeing a sizable % of short sales at the lower end of the market, BTW. e.g. person has a $200k mortgage, no payments in years, property was worth $180k at peak, $95k at bottom, and s/he/it is trying to sell for $130k. I suspect that there are still plenty of people that need a short sale. They’re just sitting tight as the bank goes through the motions required by the Bill of Rights.
