Tampa Foreclosed Properties Slowed in 3Q, but Still High
Tampa foreclosed properties did not increase in number as fast as in other metro areas in Florida in the July to September quarter, based on a report released this week by a foreclosure tracking firm.
The pace of foreclosures in the metro area covered by Tampa, Clearwater and Saint Petersburg slowed by almost five percent from the same three-month period last year and by over six percent from the April to June quarter this year.
More than 17,000 residential units in the Tampa area received foreclosure filings, representing 1.3 percent of all households in the area. With a foreclosure rate of one in 77, the Tampa area ranked 34th in a listing of the 203 largest U.S. metro areas with the highest rates.
Despite the still high foreclosure rate, the Tampa area improved the most among major metro areas in Florida. Tampa ranked below 11 other Florida metro areas still struggling from foreclosure increases, including 18th-ranking Lakeland, where the pace of foreclosures stepped up by more than 41 percent compared to last year.
Foreclosure analysts said that the major factors for increases were high unemployment rates and the resetting of exotic mortgage loans such as Alt-A pay option adjustable mortgage loans.
Unemployment in the Tampa area rose to 11.7 percent from the August rate of 11.4 percent, driving more Tampa foreclosed properties, although at a slower rate than in other Florida areas.
The highest foreclosure rate among Florida metro areas occurred in the Fort Myers and Cape Coral area, where over 13,000 households went into default or foreclosure, representing one out of every 27 houses in delinquency or foreclosure. The pace in the area slowed compared to previous data, but still, it surpassed the rates of other Florida metro areas.
Meanwhile, in September, based on data from Tampa Bay Realtors and other realtor associations in the area, home sales in Tampa Bay increased by 11 percent, but the increase rate was much lower than the 34-percent increase in home sales across Florida.
The median home sales price in the Tampa area dropped by almost 5 percent to $137,800 in September, down from $144,600 in August. For most of the past 12-month period, home prices hovered at $140,000. The inventory of houses for sale dropped to 14,433, with around 6,000 single-family properties for sale.
