The rate of foreclosures in South Florida for May 2010 has dropped an average 49% in comparison to last year's figures, according to a recent report by Condo Vultures, ranging from 55% in Broward County to 36% in Palm Beach County.
The drastically improved housing market is attributed to lender's earnest efforts to avoid foreclosures by working with homeowners and adjusting mortgages or advocating short-sale properties.
Short-sale properties, where a homeowner sells a property quickly yet fails to completely cover the mortgage, are becoming more common as banks realize the fallacy of foreclosures. On average, the foreclosure process in South Florida takes 18 months to fully process and costs approximately $100,000 per property.
In May 2010, lenders initiated 1,000 foreclosure actions in Miami-Dade County, 1,300 in Palm Beach County and 2,000 in Broward County. This is in comparison to last year's May figures of 1,900, 2,000 and 4,500, respectively.
Miami-Dade County is home to high-end neighborhoods Aventura, Coral Gables and Miami Beach and boasts some of the most luxurious homes in Southern Florida. It's foreclosure rate of 23% is also the lowest among the three aforementioned counties.