Foreclosure notices rise in Mass

BOSTON – Foreclosure petitions and auctions in Bristol County, Mass., rose in November in year-over-year comparisons, according to real estate tracking firm The Warren Group.

The group said that petitions – the first step in the foreclosure process – rose by 25.3 percent last month compared with 2008, from 142 to 178. Auction notices, the second step, jumped 86 percent (from 114 to 212), while foreclosure deeds – the last step in the process – fell by 7.8 percent (from 90 to 83).

For the year through Nov. 30, the number of petitions and auction notices issued in Bristol County has risen 33 percent and 50 percent, respectively, compared with last year. Foreclosure deeds have fallen by 25 percent.

Statewide, The Warren Group said the number of petitions in Massachusetts rose 45 percent in November year over year, from 1,335 to 1,937. Auction notices increased 78 percent, from 1,134 to 2,015. Foreclosure deeds slipped from 888 to 701, a 21 percent decline.

“While the November data provide some positive news, foreclosures continue to be a problem in the real estate market,” said Warren Group CEO Timothy M. Warren Jr. “Due to unemployment and other economic factors, homeowners continue to have high rates of delinquency on their mortgages, which eventually leads to the initiation of foreclosure proceedings.”