Glut of FL area foreclosures expected to swell
bradenton.com
MANATEE — At first glance, case number 2009-CA-11764 is not much different than many others that have been filed in Manatee County Circuit Court this year.
In the suit, filed Nov. 12, a mortgage servicer contends a southern Manatee couple defaulted on their $49,500 loan by not making any payments since June. The servicer, acting on behalf of Fannie Mae, seeks to foreclose on the couple’s unit in the Shadybrook Village condominium complex.
But the case is notable because it was the 5,593rd mortgage foreclosure lawsuit filed in Manatee in 2009 — eclipsing a record high set just last year. The tally has since grown to 5,687 cases as of Friday, and is widely expected to exceed 6,000 when the year is over.
That was no surprise to court officials, foreclosure experts and those in the mortgage industry, who say the trend is unlikely to change anytime soon.
“I wish things were different, but I don’t think it’s going to be much better in 2010,” said Bob Stobaugh, the Gulf Coast Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2009-10 president.
He and others cite many reasons for their pessimism, including high unemployment; growing numbers of delinquent loans; lenders’ inability or unwillingness to modify loan terms; and ineffective mortgage relief programs.
“I hate to be a pessimist, but I also have to acknowledge reality,” Anne Weintraub, a Sarasota real-estate attorney and foreclosure expert, wrote in an e-mail. “It is my opinion that the amount of foreclosures will increase in the new year.”
Crisis enters fourth year
That extends the local mortgage meltdown into its fourth year |
