24 Oct Foreclosures in San Diego at record lows

The housing market in San Diego has turned yet another corner – the number of foreclosures in San Diego fell to an all-time post housing recession low in September.

Lenders foreclosed 121 businesses and homes in San Diego County last month – the lowest number of foreclosures since before the housing market collapse in June 2006, when there were 109 foreclosures reported, according to CoreLogic Data.

San Diego real estate experts say the low foreclosure numbers signal the market is back stronger than ever. Foreclosures peaked at 2,004 in July 2008, but have since sharply declined. Foreclosures in San Diego County were down for the month, with 137 in August and 146 in September of the previous year.

Higher home values, combined with an improving economy, have helped. Foreclosures once dominated homes for sale in San Diego, but made up just 3.3 percent of transactions in September. The number of foreclosures are generally a barometer of an area’s overall economic health. After a high of 3,832 default notices recorded in March 2009,  the number of foreclosures fell to 398 notices last month. Those figures are down from 422 in August and 466 one year ago, according to CoreLogic. Default notices trigger the foreclosure process after 90 days of delinquent payments.

Higher home values have certainly helped the market rebound. The median price of a home for sale in San Diego County was $445,000 last month, up from lows of $280,000 in Jan. 2009. Generally, higher home values allow struggling buyers to use equity to sell their homes and avoid default.