Comptroller Report Shows Home Foreclosure Still a Problem in Many Regions of State

ALBANY – Home foreclosure in New York State continues to be a problem.

That’s according to NY Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, who released a report Monday that said New York State continues to have high levels of foreclosure activity, with new foreclosure filings remaining significantly higher than pre-recession levels.

“The foreclosure crisis is far from resolved, and there are still too many people losing their homes,” DiNapoli said. “In many places the situation has continued to get worse. Foreclosed properties displace families and weigh heavily on local communities, reducing property values and eroding tax bases. We must continue efforts to help homeowners and stem the spread of foreclosure-induced blight.”

Foreclosure filings rose rapidly after the housing bubble burst and the recession of 2008-2009 took hold. Between 2006 and 2009, the number of new foreclosure cases filed jumped from 26,706 to 47,664, an increase of 78 percent. In 2011 and 2012, new filings declined as new court rules were issued requiring lenders to affirm their claim to the property.

Since reaching a low of 16,655 in 2011, new filings climbed to 46,696 by 2013 before falling to 43,868 in 2014, still well above pre-recession levels.

PENDING FORECLOSURES ALSO INCREASE

The Comptroller’s report also shows the number of pending foreclosure cases grew by 27 percent from the beginning of 2013 to May 2014 (from 72,183 to over 91,600). Since then, the pending caseload has remained fairly steady at over 90,000.

Areas immediately outside of New York City (Long Island and the Mid-Hudson region) have the greatest number of pending foreclosures and have seen the number of pending foreclosure cases rise 63 percent from 25,097 at the beginning of 2013 to 40,985 two years later, according to the report.

Pending foreclosure cases across upstate grew by 47 percent. However, Chautauqua County saw the opposite effect, with foreclosures going down by 20 percent in the two year period and 29 percent between 2014 and 2015 (See chart below).

The report also said Chautauqua County’s current foreclosure rate is 0.57 percent, compared to the statewide average of 1.13 percent.