El Paso County foreclosures hit all time low in 2016, boding well for the local economy, but making the market more difficult for real estate investors. Because of the lack of foreclosure properties available at auction, investment property prices are going up, and available Colorado Springs investment properties are going down. In an article published today by CSBJ.com, they said:
There were 1,287 foreclosure filings in El Paso County in 2016, according to records from the office of Public Trustee Tom Mowle. That number is a 12.4 percent drop from 2015 and is the smallest total number of annual foreclosures seen in El Paso County since 1,165 were filed in 2001.
Another positive sign for the local housing market came by way of deed releases, which totaled 39,478 in 2016 — an 8.3 percent increase from 2015 and the highest number seen since 44,038 in 2013 — indicating that more homeowners are selling, refinancing or paying off their mortgages.
“That shows you how healthy the market is,” said Colorado Springs-based Realtor and former CSBJ real estate reporter Amanda Luciano.
Not all those foreclosed-upon properties end up on the auction block — due to bankruptcy filings and last-minute deals with lenders — but those that do meet stiff competition each Wednesday morning at Mowle’s office (105 E. Vermijo Ave., Ste. 101) during the weekly El Paso County foreclosure auction.
As home prices increase and short sales become less common, the auctions remain a last resort for investors looking to pay cash for affordable homes to lease or “flip” (when a home is sold twice in 12 months, usually involving renovations).
“A greater proportion of the properties up for auction are being purchased by investors,” said Mowle, who has served as public trustee since 2008. “It’s been more steady and gradual than any particular big shift.”
He said local foreclosures are still higher than the Denver metro area, driving some investors down to Colorado Springs in search of better deals and wider profit margins.
“In 2016 there were fewer sales and more being bought by investors,” Mowle said. “Sometimes they’re bid up a bunch and sometimes they’re not.”
As more and more investors have become attracted to the growing shortage of properties at auction, the percentage of homes selling each Wednesday has gradually increased each year since the market began to stabilize following the 2007-08 crash of the U.S. housing market — from 10 percent in 2010 and 2011 to a whopping 61 percent last year.
“I suppose the percent is both a combination of fewer properties being available and more properties being purchased,” Mowle said.
Read the rest of this article on CSBJ.com by clicking here.
