The number of Clark County homes in foreclosure dropped slightly in 2010, a possible sign of local market recovery, according to a state housing expert.
Others said the decline was due to cautious lenders waiting longer to foreclose on delinquent borrowers.
Clark County had 3,589 households in some stage of foreclosure in 2010, down 7.2 percent from the previous year, according to year-end figures released this month by California-based RealtyTrac. With 2.2 percent of households in foreclosure, the county had the third-highest foreclosure rate out of Washington’s 39 counties, dropping from its 2009 rank of No.1.
In 2010, Clark County fell behind No. 1-ranked Snohomish County and Pierce County, ranked No. 2.
That could mean Clark County’s inventory of foreclosures are beginning to work their way through the market, said Glenn Crellin, director of the Pullman-based Washington Center for Real Estate Research, which tracks state housing trends.
“Your (Clark County’s) problems were more significant earlier on than they were in many other parts of the state. That explains why you were at the top at the start and may have backed off in 2010,” Crellin said.
But local experts say the improvement also follows scrutiny of mortgage lenders that has caused a slowdown in the speed of foreclosures. In October and November, accusations of illegal “robo-signing” caused some of the nation’s largest lenders to halt, then deliberately slow the pace of the process. State attorneys general from 50 states vowed to keep a close eye on the process.
“What I’m seeing is the banks are being more open to options and working with the homeowner rather than just speeding them through the foreclosure process,” said Kale Dunning, a broker with Coldwell Banker Seal.
In the meantime, many Clark County homeowners have continued to struggle with monthly mortgage payments, said Teri Duffy, executive director of the Community Housing Resource Center, a Vancouver nonprofit that offers foreclosure and debt counseling. She said the center has not noticed a decrease in clients.
“We have anywhere between 35 and 45 (households) come to our workshops each week. Our counselors are busy,” she said.
Duffy blamed the county’s persistently high unemployment rate — reported at between 12 percent and 14 percent through most of the year — for homeowners’ ongoing problems.
“The issue is not going to disappear until we resolve people’s ability to find work that pays a decent cost of living,” Duffy said. “Locally, that’s our biggest problem.”
Throughout the U.S., a record 2.9 million properties were in foreclosure in 2010, an increase of nearly 2 percent from the previous year. The nationwide figures were lower than expected, due to the fourth-quarter moratorium on foreclosure activity, said RealtyTrac president and chief executive officer James J. Saccacio.
Nevada, Arizona and Florida posted the top foreclosure rates in the nation in 2010. The state of Washington ranked No. 17 in the nation. Oregon was ranked No. 13.
