Portland Market Short Sales and Foreclosures 2015 Update

Portland Foreclosures: So five years ago?

Not quite.

Since the housing bubble burst in 2009, and hundreds of homes went into foreclosure, Portland home buyers and sellers have adapted to a market composed of about 10% bank-owned homes and short sales.

While the number of foreclosures has definitely lessened since the burst of the bubble, there are still quite a few entering the market every month. Oregon-wide, foreclosures actually increased in 2014, according to recent reports by RealtyTrac and the RMLS.

RMLS (Regional Multiple Listing Service) tells the story for Portland. They reported that in the 4th quarter of 2014, 12% of new Portland listings were either bank-owned or short sales. Compared to the same period in 2013, that’s an increase of almost 5%.

According to a recent Oregon Live article, “RealtyTrac says Oregon now ranks 21st nationally in foreclosures per housing units. The worst state by far is Florida, where 1 in every 44 housing units statewide is undergoing foreclosure proceedings. In Oregon, the rate is 1 in every 154 units.”

The RealtyTrac data also indicated that the rate of new foreclosures is actually decreasing now for the Portland area, but there is still a backlog of homes that are bank-owned or eligible for short sale. For the Portland home buyer looking for a good deal on a home right now, there are plenty to choose from. We regularly set up Portland buyers on a foreclosure and short sale only search that will send them listings the moment a new distressed property hits the market.

Buying a bank-owned or short-sale home is different than the standard real estate transaction. The home may have deferred maintenance and it takes the right kind of buyer to see the hidden potential. Your Portland real estate agent can help you make the assessment based on all the available information on the property. My buyers team is certified to work with both foreclosures and short sales. We can help guide you through the process.

Do you own a home that is being threatened with foreclosure? A Portland short sale is usually the best way to recover some of your investment and prevent your home from entering foreclosure limbo. I work with a team of experienced bank negotiators who have closed on hundreds of successful short sales. See the Short Sale Agent page for more information.

Moving into 2015, homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages can rest assured that there are still home buyers out there looking for short sale homes. With these latest numbers from the RMLS, it seems that the market will retain a certain percentage of non-traditional home sales as we work through our Portland foreclosure backlog, a backlog that will take many more years to empty.