The foreclosure crisis has been spreading fast into Fort Lauderdale. Not only homes are entering foreclosure in droves, but also commercial buildings.
In the first quarter, the number of foreclosed homes for sale in Fort Lauderdale, FL spiked compared to the total one year earlier. In the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area, more than 52,000 homes were notified of default, foreclosure and repossession, comprising 2.2 percent of all residential units in the metro area. The number also marked a staggering increase of 71.4 percent from the total of foreclosure actions filed in the first quarter last year.
Florida foreclosed homes also jumped up in number in April, posting an increase of 7.13 percent in REO counts over the month. More than 9,200 homes were purchased back by lenders in April, in addition to the more than 8,600 homes repossessed earlier in March.
In the first four months of the year, a total of 31,309 homes were acquired back by banks through the foreclosure process.
The claws of foreclosure homes sales also spread out into the commercial property sector. Over the past few months, all types of commercial buildings in Fort Lauderdale suffered declines in value and those without deep reserves got drowned in the foreclosure crisis.
The office tower One Financial Plaza was the latest among the most recent commercial foreclosures. Compass Bank filed a case to repossess the building after the developers failed to pay the $65-million loan they took out in 2007 from Guaranty Bank. Compass acquired all the loans of Guaranty Bank when it failed last year.
The owners bought One Financial in 2007 for $65 million with the Guaranty loan, which matured in March. Last year, they planned to convert part of the tower into hotel rooms, commercial spaces and 300 housing units, but they were never able to launch their project.
The recent foreclosure actions filed by City National Bank of Florida, JPMorgan Chase Bank and 1st National Bank of South Florida show how deeply the foreclosure crisis has affected Fort Lauderdale properties.
John Cutts has been educated in the finer points of the foreclosure market over 5 years.
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