The Reality of Foreclosures

It seems like every real estate company you drive by these days has a sign out in front saying "Foreclosure List Available." One office in Gig Harbor put one of those signs out last month and had over 100 walk-ins asking for the list. There are foreclosure tours (be wary), articles about grabbing a great foreclosure deal and just all kinds of talk about foreclosure opportunities these days. Recently my office put together a list of pre-forclosure homes because it's such a hot market. This information is all public record because the home's auction date must be registered with the county and made public. I was scanning through the list yesterday (all 70 pages) and, while many agents see opportunity, I have to say I just felt a bit depressed. Looking at all of the names and homes made it much more real and personal. I recognized a few names of people I didn't even know were in such trouble. The truly sad part is that the majority of people on the list are only about $15,000 behind in payments and fees. I don't know everyone's situation and why they are losing their home, but that seems like a small amount to lose a home over. Hopefully some of these folks will be able to sell their homes or work out a new payment schedule with the banks before the auction dates.

So, where are all of these soon to be foreclosed properties? Primarily in East Tacoma, Spanaway and Puyallup. Not so much in North Tacoma, UP or Fircrest and practically none in Gig Harbor.