Alabama foreclosure homes for sale

Figures for the number of foreclosures in Alabama were up 15% in October, whereas much of the rest of the country seemed to have a respite due to the introduction of new legislation to assist those about to undergo foreclosure.

RealtyTrac, a California based company who have been tracking the foreclosure crisis since the summer of 2007, report that a total of 836 homes were in some stage of foreclosure in the month of October across the State of Alabama, which amounts to one household in every 2,524. This may be a 15% increase on the previous month but to put it in perspective, Las Vegas has 12,155 properties undergoing the same procedure in October which is the highest in the US and seven times the national average.

New legislation has been introduced in an attempt to delay the process of foreclosures. Lenders must now contact homeowners directly 45 and then 30 days prior to issuing a Notice to Default. This is aimed at homeowners who are too ashamed to face up to the realities of the economic crisis that may be facing them. Many lenders, particularly those that have fallen foul of the sub-prime mortgage trap, simply think that the problem will go away if the payments are not made.

The legislation is also designed to place more responsibility on the banks as when properties are foreclosed; the lender becomes the rightful owner of the property. Homeowners that are evicted often cause a great deal of damage in the process of leaving the house, including stripping fixtures and fittings and even tearing up copper piping for re-sale. Properties are then left in a terrible condition as the responsibility for maintenance lies with the bank, who has either no interest or no time for maintenance and repairs.

The fact that banks have become de facto owners of properties is an explanation of why the Alabama neighbourhoods suffering from high numbers of foreclosures look so desolate with overgrown lawns and wild weeds pushing through broken fences. It is not long before opportunist thieves make off with parts of the houses, or worse still, squatters move in. It is therefore in the interest of all, banks and homeowners that this legislation works to avoid more foreclosures.

So as long as the economy does not take a more significant turn for the worse over the coming months, it may be said through being slightly more cautious than other states, Alabama has escaped the worst of the foreclosure crisis; that said, it is of little consolation to those whose homes have been repossessed or to those residents living next door to abandoned and decaying houses.