Melrose Foreclosure Activity Jumps in January

Melrose had year-over-year increases in foreclosure auctions and completed foreclosures in January, according to the latest figures from The Warren Group, and a drop in foreclosure starts.

The increase in foreclosure activity matches a statewide increase, with both starts and completed foreclosures soaring in January according to The Warren Group.

In Melrose, there were six auction announcements in January. In the same month last year, there was only one.

Statewide, a total of 1,512 auction announcements were tracked in January, a 31 percent incline from 1,150 during the same month the previous year.

The city also had three foreclosures deeds filed in January, which represent completed foreclosures, compared to one deed the same month last year.

Massachusetts had 662 foreclosure deeds filed statewide in January, a 25 percent increase from 529 deeds recorded in January 2011. The Warren Group noted in a press release that this is the fewest number of deeds statewide since May, when 571 foreclosures were completed.

Melrose had a small drop in foreclosure petitions that represent the start of the foreclosure process in January—only one filed, compared to two in the same month last year.

Statewide foreclosure petitions increased more than 68 percent, rising to 1,333 from 793 in January 2011. Petitions dropped in all but two months in 2011 according to The Warren Group.

In its press release, The Warren Group said foreclosure activity was slow throughout much of last year as banks worked through legal and documentation issues. By contrast, 1,873 and 1,960 foreclosure petitions were filed in January 2010 and 2009, respectively. Foreclosure petitions in January rose in every county in Massachusetts. January petitions were 32 percent higher than the number filed in December and are at the highest level since August 2011.

"Banks were slow to initiate foreclosure petitions in much of 2011, so now we are seeing the backlog of foreclosures work through the system," said Timothy M. Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group, in the release. "The increase doesn't necessarily indicate a declining economy, but rather a step toward seeing a clear picture of the market."

Information from a Warren Group press release was used in this report.