Foreclosures in the Tulsa metro area, as well as the state and the nation, continued to drop steadily in August, leaving at least one industry expert to worry about other things such as the interest rate, which is creeping toward 5 percent.
According to RealtyTrac Inc., 378 homes in seven-county Tulsa metro area were in some stage of default, auction or bank repossession compared to 491 homes in July.
There was one foreclosure for every 1,077 households in the Tulsa metro area, which was down 23 percent from July and down 30 percent from this month last year.
In Tulsa County alone, the foreclosure rate was one in every 904 households, compared to Oklahoma County's even better outlook with one in every 1,922 households.
"Our foreclosure crisis is about over. We're so blessed to be in Oklahoma," said Sheldon Detrick, CEO of Prudential Detrick/Prudential Alliance Realty.
But while foreclosures in Tulsa and Oklahoma City markets are improving and the number of foreclosures in the state are the lowest they've been since June 2007, Detrick expressed concern about buyer activity and the number of open houses which he said have dropped off significantly for the past three weeks.
"The continual rise in interest rates is having a real slow-down effect on the market, and I think this is a foreshadowing of things to come," he said. "Nobody is projecting it to go down. Everybody is projecting it's going to go up."
Detrick said he didn't think there would be a dramatic decrease in home buying until interest rates reached 6 percent.
But as for the brighter outlook on foreclosures, Detrick said that the economy and a good job market are no doubt keeping home owners ahead of their mortgages.
"We're not a bad economy state," he said. "We have energy, we have aviation."
Among the nation's 20 largest cities, Miami, Fla, had the highest foreclosure rate with one is every 324 households, followed by Tampa, Fla., with one in every 347 households.
By state, Nevada took the top spot again for most foreclosures followed by Florida, Ohio, Maryland and Delaware.
Oklahoma ranked 34th, improving from its 29th ranking last month. North Dakota, followed by Montana, had the lowest foreclosure rates.
Tulsa's statistical area includes Creek, Okmulgee, Osage, Pawnee, Rogers, Tulsa and Wagoner counties.
Rates have risen more than a full percentage point since May when Fed chairman Ben Bernanke first signaled that the Federal Reserve might reduce its bond purchases later this year. In Tulsa, for instance, the range is now between 4.48 percent to 5.03 percent for a 30-year fixed mortgage, according to bankrate.com<
Susan Hylton 918-581-8381
susan.hylton@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Foreclosures drop
Real Estate
U.S. homebuilders' confidence in the housing market held this month at its highest level in nearly eight years. But builders are starting to worry that sales may slow if mortgage rates continue to rise.
New home construction in the Tulsa region from January to August is outpacing last year's numbers, a continuation of the upward tick that started in 2012 following a six-year slide.
CONTACT THE REPORTER
918-581-8381
Email
