San Diego default filings surge in August

San Diego default filings surge in August
The month-to-month increase was largely due to two major banks

By Lily Leung, Reporter - Real estate

Link to article: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/sep/19/foreclosure-numbers/

Monday, September 19, 2011 at 12:56 p.m.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY — The number of default notices, the first step in the foreclosure process, ballooned in August, largely due to activity from Bank of New York Mellon and Bank of America, figures from La Jolla-based DataQuick show.

Bank of New York Mellon filings in San Diego County increased from 76 in July to 403 in August, or 430 percent. Meanwhile, Bank of America pushed through more than two times as many defaults during that same time period.

The two lenders, known as beneficiaries in public records, accounted for the bulk of the county’s most recent month-to-month increase. Notices rose from 1,274 in July to 2,094 in August, or 64.4 percent. That’s the largest month-to-month percentage increase since December 2008.

Similar jumps were evident throughout the state, including Los Angeles and Orange counties.

"It appears they're working through their backlogs of delinquent loans," said DataQuick analyst Andrew LePage. "But why and why all of a sudden. It's not clear."

In a statement, Bank of America spokeswoman Jumana Bauwens said the company has been seeing "continued increases" in foreclosure referrals in several parts of the U.S. due to the backlog of foreclosures that were on hold in late 2010 and early 2011.

What does August's sudden upsurge in default notices mean for county home values?

That also is unclear, said LePage of DataQuick.

"We don't know the magnitude and duration" of filings in the months ahead, he said.

The number of trustee deeds, which signal a foreclosure, also increased last month. There were 835 foreclosures in August, up 4.6 percent from July.