Metro Atlanta foreclosures set monthly and annual records
Foreclosure notices in metro Atlanta soared to new heights in November, setting monthly and annual records, according to data released Monday by Equity Depot.
A total of 13,834 foreclosure notices were published in the 13-county metro area in November, Equity Depot said. The previous record of 13,130 was set in August.
Also, with one month of the year left to go, the annual record already has been shattered. A total of 117,437 notices were published during the first 11 months of the year, topping last year’s 12-month record of 117,107, Equity Depot said.
Foreclosure notices published this month are for auctions on the courthouses steps set for next month.
Nine of the 13 metro counties posted individual monthly records — Bartow, Clayton, Cobb, Dekalb, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale, Equity Depot said.
November notices were 24 percent higher than in October and 47 percent greater than a year ago, according to Equity Depot.
Barry Bramlett, president of Equity Depot, said he was “not sure if last month’s moratorium by Bank of America and others had anything to do with this month’s numbers.” Some major lenders had temporarily halted foreclosures to deal with flawed paperwork on some of their documents.
Gwinnett posted the most notices in November with 2,924. Fulton was second with 2,557, followed by DeKalb with 2,114. Cobb came in fourth with 1,656, followed by Clayton with 1,252.
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95 comments Add your comment
Andy in Blairsville
November 15th, 2010
9:20 am
I’m not saying home prices weren’t overinflated….look at the fools that were paying $400-500K for 90 year old little craftsman homes in the Highlands/Emory/Decatur.
Yes, home prices need to come down nationwide for the average Joe to afford one, but that drags down everyone who currently has a home in the process.
This mess is far from over and it won’t be over until 10’s of millions of people get a real job again.
Witchhazel
November 15th, 2010
9:28 am
This problem was caused by people that should have not gotten houses anyway, and Demokratic policy. If you cant verify a job, or income you still got a house. No money down, that’s ok, we will give you a loan for the house and a loan for the downpayment. No problem, you are here illegal, well we will just use your 2 year old girls social security number. People this happened and the fool want to blame republicans and some democrats.
Charles
November 15th, 2010
9:29 am
Building prisons for the those who lost their houses, and those unemployed “deadbeats”, like me, is what the elite would love to do(some of us “deadbeats” does not like being unemployed, we want to work!).
Hank
November 15th, 2010
9:34 am
Dead on comments – I’m down here since ‘94, appraising since ‘89 – and no I wasn’t one of “those” appraisers. The only work I do is for FNMA and it’s all foreclosure work. There’s no shortgage and I’ll be out again today to look at another group of train wrecks.
Eagle is spot on as are many otehrs – what I want to know is how I can appraise a home at 10K when there is 200K out on it? Who are the brokers, appraisers, underwriters…..even “buyers”? Why aren’t they in jail? If you guys saw the amount of fraud in metro Atlanta….sickening! And I swear there has to be a blind eye to it all….
Hines
November 15th, 2010
9:34 am
$14 Trillion in National Debt and counting – no more social security, no more medicare and no more mortgage interest tax deduction.
Front Line (PBS) http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tentrillion/view/?utm_campaign=viewpage&utm_medium=grid&utm_source=grid
EagleNationRising
November 15th, 2010
9:45 am
FYI: We have a bond market crisis brewing as well folks. This is due to our national deficit which is ballooning at an all time high. We are left to believe that either party cares about the overall fiscal health of this nation.
In one corner, we have the Republicans who swear that anyone that fails to extend the “unfunded” Bush tax cuts is risking the future growth of our economy. These same Republicans failed to contain government costs. These same Republicans inherited an economic surplus and raised the deficit higher than ever before.
In the other corner, we have the Democrats who believe that they can spend their way out of this mess. Of course, the overwhelming majority of that spending went to the companies (auto) and banks that the government decided. In the meantime, these Democrats refused to tackle the exploding costs of healthcare by implementing a public option or removing the anti-trust exemption on insurance companies. These same Democrats have created the largest Federal deficit in history, falling the lead of the previous Republican leadership. Anything you can do, I can do better!
Dems say they will make more “unfunded” cuts for the Middle class and only raise taxes on those making over $250k/yr. It will save $700B of our over $4T debt. Republicans say that the world will end of the cuts are not extended as we stare down a $4T debt. Guess what, if the tax cuts expire for EVERYONE (We the People are supposed to be in this thing together) we will save over $4T.
Of course, forget about responsibility in government and leadership. We are going to get more rhetoric. We are going to have falling home prices. We are going to have exploding debt. We are going to have a bond market crisis. We are actually seeing what the Great Depression looked like. It is just spread across one individual crisis after another. It is a borderline joke.
In the meantime, as evidence by this blog, people are blaming political leaders for the irresponsible and selfish behavior of banks (businesses) and home owners, who operate to live beyond their means. Interesting!
EagleNationRising
November 15th, 2010
9:52 am
Charles: I hope no one has suggested building a prison. I would not mind prisons for politicians who handed over our tax dollars to banking executives. It is not the responsibility of the US President to deal with foreclosures.
It is the responsibility of the US President and the Congress to protect jobs in the United States. This nor the previous two Presidents have done that. They have sold our jobs to the lowest bidders, who obviously live abroad in places like China, India, Pakistan, Mexico, Singapore, Philippines and others. It is called NAFTA. President Obama actually ran against it. You may remember that he painted Hillary Clinton as the devil for her blind support of the measure that her husband signed into law.
Of course, our cowardly President has not addressed this matter. He simply used the matter to attract voters like myself. A repeal of NAFTA would immediately create manufacturing jobs across the nation. It would put US business on more equal footing with manufacturing in other nations. Of course, that would force US business to move operations here. They do not want that. Therefore, it does not happen. It is similar to the President and the Democrats failing to require that the health care legislation include a public option.
This is our nation. Our leaders refuse to address deficits or unemployment in a responsible matter. In the meantime, people have lost jobs and unfortunately their homes. At the end of the day, a home loan is between the lender and the home owner. It is not about government. It certainly should not be about prisons.
Andy in Blairsville
November 15th, 2010
10:06 am
At least Goldman Sachs is doing well!
PR
November 15th, 2010
10:22 am
Anyone who continues to believe that Bush caused this mess needs to have their head examined. While it is true that Bush should have undone some of Clinton’s mess, he didn’t. Bush alerted us to some problems but no one was listening. Obama has been too busy bailing out big businesses (GM) and banks and his disasterous ObamaCare to pay any attention to the economy. Obama has been too busy with other things that only HE is concerned about and let our economy continue to derail.
With that being said, the people of this country are the ones that said YES to credit card debt, exotic mortgages and NO savings that caused this train wreck. If you did any of the above, blame yourself for your failures not a President.
ObamaCare is already having negative affects on businesses. Jobs will continue to go overseas if we don’t stop what is happening to business. Obama could do something with NAFTA, or atleast pretend like he cares about our dying economy. He and his wife would rather be out of the US traveling and apologizing to other counties than focusing on our problems. I guess he knows he only has two years worth of free international travel on the taxpayers backs – so what the hell. Let the next President worry about the economy!
artwist
November 15th, 2010
10:28 am
As bad as the current situation is with the foreclosures, what replaces the current system should be much more sustainable. Today banks cannot loan money for a home unless there is a credible chance of repayment. When we work through the mess in a couple of more years, foreclosures will be much less common. Of course, the downside will be that there will be a lower demand for housing and prices will not go up at the previous rate we have come to expect.
Biff Jones
November 15th, 2010
11:38 am
If we could figure out a way to carve Washington DC out of America and float it out to sea and sink it we may get back on our feet. Washington District of Corruption is a cesspool of greed and lies.
“Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms (of government) those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny”-Thomas Jefferson
Don't forget about Immigration Reform
November 15th, 2010
11:53 am
One factor in our economy that we continue to ignore is immigration – both legal and illegal – and what is continues to do to our country. Investigate for yourselves, look at the foreclosures around metro ATL (especially in Gwinnett) and you’ll discover many being forclosed on are immigrants.
Our schools are being forced to use money to teach English, our healthcare system has been invaded, ect by immigration. Immigration to the is country must be reformed to make it harder to be an American citizen. We must get rid of illegals as well.
People need to investigate the negative economic impact they have had and will continue to have on US and demand strict reform.
JeromeMJ
November 15th, 2010
12:05 pm
SO the truth is a bad headline?
SamE knows best
November 15th, 2010
12:06 pm
I don’t think we can blame Mr. Obama for the current situation any more than we can blame the economic system prior to the recession. America has thrived off of buy now/pay later far too much then should be allowed, and THAT plays a large role in our current situation along with the low wages paid in most industries..If we can stop overpaying executives (to go to meetings, travel, and enjoy costly meals) then we could actually pay the work force what it deserves..
jason
November 15th, 2010
12:14 pm
I thought Clark Howard said (few months back) Housing was getting better. Prices were going up, foreclosures were down, what happened Clark?
Andy in Blairsville
November 15th, 2010
12:31 pm
Clark’s an idiot. He also said ETF’s were a great investment the other day..
BC
November 15th, 2010
12:35 pm
At this junction of the housing crisis I really don’t think that all of these foreclosures are from people who could not afford a home. My guess would be that a majority are from people that are just walking away from underwater mortgages. Until this is addressed then it far from over.
BC
November 15th, 2010
12:39 pm
Clark Howard is no different that any other “celebrity financial advisor”. They won’t tell you the truth for fear that people will get the “milk and bread” syndrome thus sending the market further in a downward spiral.
Tired of Right Vs. Left
November 15th, 2010
12:55 pm
These people who are posting blaming the dems or the repubs are silly. Every argument seems to deteriorate into these arguments. Try all of the above. We were all to stupid to see this crisis coming (including myself) and no one party can fix it, and no one party was completely responsible. WE ALL HAD A ROLE IN THIS AND IF THE NEW CONGRESS CAN’T PUT TOGETHER COMMON SENSE SOLUTIONS WITH THE PRESIDENT MOVING FORWARD THEN WE WILL TURN INTO 1990′S JAPAN OR GREECE 2010. Anytime I have a conversation now with someone who only blames the other party for everything and not theirs I just assume is an idiot.
Big Nick
November 15th, 2010
12:58 pm
Trea, you are an IDIOT! None of this is Bush’s fault. It started with Carter and continued with Clinton and Obama. The Democraps forced banks to give (loan) money to poor minorities (in order to buy votes) so that they too could “get theirs” or “share in the Ameican Dream”, FULL knowingly that these worthless pieces of $hit could not and would not pay the money back. The Democraps would not allow banks to expand their businesses unless they lowered their standards (just like affirmative action does) and now look at what has happened…
dtruth
November 15th, 2010
1:01 pm
It never fails to amaze how folks can say with a straight face, Obama is the cause to our current issues. They all know the real culprit, 8 years of Bush policies: In bed with Military Industrial Complex, Pharmaceutical Companies, Insurance Industry, Banks, Mortgage Industry, Big Oil. Was it a coincidence the day after Bush was elected that gas prices went up. Is it a coincidence that more billionaires were made during Bush time than any other time in history. Was a war against Iraq really warranted or was his father’s revenge and control of oil the real reason. Obama is a scapegoat. He is a good man that want to help people, but no matter what he does Fox News, racist folk and the like, really do not want to see a black man come to the rescue of the world. They would prefer him to be and act like the constant image shown on nightly news (Black man in hand cuffs/selling drugs/commiting criminal acts etc). They will make sure mess is constantly stirred up to prevent logical discussions to be had. When everything is stirred people don’t see things rationally. Demo against .Repub/ Black against White/ Rich against Poor. Obama is not perfect and need to be more on point for sure but he is far better than Bush because he truly has good intentions but is fighting against a far more dangerous foe than Taliban or Al Qaeda right here in the good ole USA. Some of us know the real deal.
Big Nick
November 15th, 2010
1:02 pm
@ Don’t Forget About Immigration Reform….Right on! You hit the nail on the head! I’m sure you will now be referred to as a “racist” for calling a spade a spade.
connie da' commie
November 15th, 2010
1:15 pm
Yall’s a bunch of whiners, the bloggers postin’ here are more proof that American exceptionalism is a myth…..
dtruth
November 15th, 2010
1:28 pm
I agree, w/Don’t Forget About Immigration Reform…. immigration is a huge deal and cause more issues than we probably know. I am an advocate of what you put in, you get out and there are far too many people that have put nothing into the system and getting more out than the folks that have contributed to it.
candy
November 15th, 2010
1:30 pm
I do not want to become one of the foreclosures. Need a job and want to work!! Help!!!
CC
November 15th, 2010
1:59 pm
When are people going to stop blaming everything that is happening in OUR state on Obama. The article references foreclosure in Georgia. The fact is that this RED state has had a REPUBLICAN administration for the past 8 years and that same administration has done NOTHING to improve the state’s economy stop mortgage lenders from FREELY swooping in like vultures on Georgians. Most other states REQUIRE lenders to ‘GO TO COURT’ before they can just take people’s homes, but Georgia gives them FREE REIGN to do as they please. Modify the laws and make it harder for businesses to freely do what they want to the citizens of our state.
WE NEED CHANGE IN GEORGIA, BUT UNFORTUNATELY IT LOOKS LIKE IT GOING TO GET WORSE.
RSC
November 15th, 2010
2:02 pm
Do all of you folks spouting out that nothing is Bush’s fault know how stupid you sound? Especially when you want to place all blame on Clinton and Obama and completely excuse the 8 years in between when everything went to crap.
Quantrill
November 15th, 2010
2:13 pm
Food Stamp Nation…….a statist dream come true
RSC
November 15th, 2010
2:18 pm
Clinton was not responsbile for NAFTA. That was George Bush, Sr. There is even an official photo taken on December 17, 1992 (prior to Clinton) of the official signing of NAFTA by Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, US president George Bush, and Mexican president Carlos Salinas de Gortari hanging in the George Bush Library. (go to the website fina-nafi.org for a full timeline of NAFTA).
Also, The Community Reinvestment Act, which carried NO FINES OR PENALTIES FOR NON COMPLIANCE, stated that banks could not discriminate based on the LOCATION of the property being financed but required banks to ensure these loans were made “in a safe and sound manner” and did NOT require banks to make high-risk loans.
It was the American Dream Downpayment Assistance Act, signed by Bush in 2003 under a GOP controlled Congress, that allowed for the risky no downpayment, no closing costs, no qualifications loans.
I know facts simply annoy conservatives, especially when sound bites are so much easier to remember and spew, but try opening your mind and eyes to the actual facts once in a while.
BS Aplenty
November 15th, 2010
2:20 pm
EagleNationRising -
I generally agree with your comments about the genesis of the residential housing bubble. If you can’t afford the mortgage, if the mortgage payment can adjust, etc. then wait until you can afford such a payment. It really is about personal responsibility on the individual level.
From a macro perspective, there have been some economists who fault the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act passed in 1999 (by then president Bill Clinton I must correct you – not W). G-L-B was simply one more step to deregulation of Glass-Steagall which began in 1980 with the deregulation of interest rates. This legislation did exempt “swaps” from the SEC regulation. However, the use of swaps to manage credit risk in a mortgage pool is a result of poor quality mortgages. Their use (for credit risk purposes) would not be needed if the mortgage pool was other than subprime.
I personally think the fault lies principally with Congress and the executive branch because they want to keep the economy growing – GDP growth is king. Hence, the acceptability of fly-by-night mortgage companies extending subprime mortgages and selling them to, you guessed it, FNMA and FHLMC (or having them guarantee the mortgages). It really is the government involvement in the mortgage industry and possibly the Federal Reserves monetary policy that needs to be addressed.
RSC is Delusional
November 15th, 2010
3:19 pm
Everyone knows that NAFTA was signed by Clinton after he ratified many of the components. It was initiated by GHW Bush, however radical changes were done and the bill signed by CLINTON.
CRA most certainly did start this fiasco. The anti-discrimination part of the act was what consumers used to demand loans from banks.
RSC, you need to stop using Wikipedia to cherry pick your non-facts and research deeper into who is to blame. For very example you state is fact, the rest of us can come up with FACTS to continue to prove you WRONG!
Enjoy your ObamaGod as he has just 2 more years left. Lets hope he attempts to lift a finger to help our economy.
RSC sounds STUPID
November 15th, 2010
3:24 pm
“Do all of you folks spouting out that nothing is Bush’s fault know how stupid you sound? Especially when you want to place all blame on Clinton and Obama and completely excuse the 8 years in between when everything went to crap”
NO ONE has said that “nothing” is Bush’s fault! NO ONE said damage wasn’t done by CONSUMERS the 8 years Bush was in office. NO ONE has placed all blame on your precious Clinton and Obama. Your rants and posts are bizzare and riddled with inaccurate information.
Andy in Blairsville
November 15th, 2010
3:30 pm
At this point who gives a chit who caused this as the chit is already out of the horse?
Why don’t we argue about how we can fix this disaster in 10 years instead of 20?
RSC
November 15th, 2010
3:38 pm
I told you facts simply annoy conservatives. The North American Free Trade Agreement, the actual treaty between the US, Mexico and Canda, was signed by US President George Bush on December 17, 1992. Later, Congress passed and Clinton signed the North American Free Trade Implementation Act, but not before Clinton made changes in order to protect American interests.
no job has cost us everything
November 15th, 2010
3:54 pm
What CC stated is so very true. The banks can do whatever they please and get by with it, if I was doing the same thing, I would go to prison. The banks will not work with you when you get laid off. They don’t care to work with homeowners as they make more money off of foreclosures. I was one of the ones who purchased a modest home for 124K although I was qualified for 250K. I paid on this home 9 years, never was late. Then comes 2008 husband laid off from 5 jobs in one year due to the bad economy. The mortgage still gets paid on time. Then 2009 comes husband gets laid off again, this time for 13 months with no job in sight in the Atl. area. Mortgage still gets paid on time. Then comes 2010 and I get laid off of my job w/o notice or severance. I am late on my mortgage in June, I beg them to work with me, they said no. Since both breadwinners are out of work, how do you pay the mortgage. It is very simple, no job, no money, no mortgage payment. The bank forclosed on us in only 4 months time. Our home was sold Nov.2nd. Heartbreaking, we were not deadbeats, we have worked all of our lives, the economy tanked and we both lost jobs, that is it. My husband is now working out of state as there are no jobs in ATL., I don’t care what people say, there are no jobs. I was forced to also move to another state due to the foreclosure. Our choices were to either get employment in another state or be homeless in Georgia. It really does not matter who is the blame for the current state as alot of hands have contributed. It is really important that the laws must change and not let the bank just literally steal home after home. Georgia needs to become a Judicial state with a Judge governing the foreclosure process. Florida is a Judicial State and the average time it takes to complete the foreclosure process is 24 months. California is also a Judicial state and the time it takes to complete the foreclosure process is about the same.
John
November 15th, 2010
4:43 pm
I really can’t understand how PEOPLE forget about how we got into this situation in the first place. Its was not 8 years of OBAMA it was 8 years of George Bush. Obama did not let the economy plunge into a recession after he left office. All the while saying the whole damn time that the economy was good. He knew that we were going into a FREE FALL but it would only happen after he left office. All the while him and the TEA Bag Party can blame a president that they never wanted to be in the WHITE house to began with. Karma is a mutha……
Editor In Chief
November 15th, 2010
4:52 pm
“I told you facts simply annoy conservatives.” … No, you told half-truths that simply annoy anyone with the right infomation
“but not before Clinton made changes in order to protect American interests.” … you finally admitted that Clinton made changes, but unfortunately those changes DID NOT protect OUR interests.
Editor In Chief
November 15th, 2010
5:04 pm
“Its was not 8 years of OBAMA it was 8 years of George Bush.” … NO – it was 8 years of Clinton and HIS policies.
“Obama did not let the economy plunge into a recession after he left office.” … another blithering “it’s Bush’s fault” statement.
“He knew that we were going into a FREE FALL but it would only happen after he left office” … yet another “blame Bush” diatribe. Yep, Bush planned for the economy to self destruct upon his exit!
“All the while him and the TEA Bag Party can blame a president that they never wanted to be in the WHITE house to began with”. … And blaming Bush yet again (yawn) and the new threat to Obama the Tea Party. Good attempt at the race card with your WHITE house reference.
“Karma is a mutha” … got that right! Watch your back John!
PR
November 15th, 2010
5:11 pm
@ no job has cost us everything
Where was your SAVINGS? The rest of what your saying about no jobs in ATL, the bank not working with you, etc are all excuses. Your post is riddled with blame on everyone except you and your husband. Take responsibility for everything you did wrong to contribute to the problem then people will start listening.
Don't forget about Immigration Reform
November 15th, 2010
5:22 pm
GO LOOK AT THE LISTS OF FORECLOSURES ALL AROUND METRO ATL.
Gwinnett is loaded with immigrants who are being forclosed on. They steal from our taxpayers through education, healthcare and mortgage defaults. GO LOOK!
Uriah
November 15th, 2010
5:53 pm
Thank you Community Reinvestment Act for putting a bunch of people into homes they couldn’t afford.
The libs love to howl about that one. But in fact the government thought everyone should be a homeowner, and they twisted the arms of the bankers to give (as opposed to loan) $ to people who could never repay it.
Charles
November 15th, 2010
7:28 pm
PR
November 15th, 2010
5:11 pm
@ no job has cost us everything
Where was your SAVINGS? The rest of what your saying about no jobs in ATL, the bank not working with you, etc are all excuses. Your post is riddled with blame on everyone except you and your husband. Take responsibility for everything you did wrong to contribute to the problem then people will start listening.
PR- Did you not read what @ No Job wrote? They went 2 years with reduced income, so I would say they did have savings! And for the record, before you are judging others, I would take a look at yourself. You could find yourself in a bad situation someday, so lay off of the judgments!
Isakson & Chambliss want more tax cuts
November 15th, 2010
8:33 pm
Gee maybe Isakson will con everyone in the congress to go along with another tax cut on home purchases. Just like last time, it will do nothing to help stem the tide of foreclosures. Also, it doesn’t address the cause (high and continued unemployment).
We need jobs programs!
We need mortgage cram-downs!
TnGelding
November 16th, 2010
3:35 am
Uriah
November 15th, 2010
5:53 pm
False. They were supposed to qualify. Look up the act. I’m too lazy to supply the link.
Ever heard the term “ownership society?”
no job has cost us everything
November 16th, 2010
7:48 am
Charles, you are right we depleted all of savings over two years.