The number of foreclosed properties offered at sheriff auctions decreased in South Carolina in February 2011 compared with the previous month. Foreclosure-related actions also declined in several local markets of the state. Housing market experts, however, are reluctant to declare an industry recovery despite a nationwide drop in filings.
Foreclosures for sale in Myrtle Beach and distressed property filings in most areas of the state recorded month-over-month declines. In the metro area of Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, foreclosure-related filings dropped in February by 32.62% when compared with January 2011. This marks the second month in a row that foreclosure totals have dropped in the metropolitan region, with January figures also posting a decline when compared with December 2010 totals.
Meanwhile, foreclosures in South Carolina also posted a decrease, although not as high as the decline recorded in Greenville. The decrease was still significant though, as foreclosure actions fell by 10.37% in the whole state in February when compared with January. The drop in foreclosure filings in both Greenville and South Carolina mirrored the decline in the national market as nationwide filings fell by 14% in February of this year compared with the previous month. When compared with year-ago levels, the nationwide decline was a huge 27%.
Both local and nationwide figures include notices of default, properties scheduled for sheriff auctions and properties repossessed by banks and lenders. February data showed that one household out of every 577 in the whole U.S. was under some form of foreclosure during the month. In South Carolina, the ratio was one household for every 747 housing units, while the Greenville metropolitan area posted a rate of one household per 584 residential units.
Despite the almost nationwide decline in foreclosure filings and foreclosed homes for sale numbers, housing experts stated that the housing industry is still far from a sustained recovery. They asserted that the drop in foreclosure figures has more to do with processes getting disrupted by the documentation controversy that resulted in the temporary halt of foreclosure processing during the 2010 fourth quarter. They further explained that allegations against lenders of using faulty documents to pursue foreclosure cases have caused them to tread slowly, thereby creating a backlog in foreclosure procedures.
Industry experts further revealed that foreclosed properties offered at sheriff auctions and filings related to foreclosure actions are expected to rise again after a few months. They did claim, however, that the drop in foreclosure filings will likely continue for another two or three months as lenders try to cope with the impact of the documentation issue.



