Foreclosure sales slow....is that good or bad?

Distressed properties — those in some stage of foreclosure — edged up to 28% of all U.S. residential sales in the first quarter from 27% the previous quarter, according to RealtyTrac.

The percentage would have been higher, analysts say, but overall housing demand is weak and the banks are not disposing of these assets at nearly the rate they were at the same time last year, when distressed properties made up 29% of all sales.

The numbers tell the story: In the first quarter of this year, 158,434 bank-owned properties (or those in the foreclosure pipeline) were sold, a 36% decline from the first quarter of 2010 and a 16% decrease from the fourth quarter of last year.

Compare that with the nearly 350,000 distressed properties sold in the first quarter of 2009, and you can see why the foreclosure pipeline is so bloated.

"According to our numbers, if you just look at the properties in foreclosure or on the banks' books, it will take us three years to work through that inventory at the current rate of sales," says Rick Sharga, senior vice president of RealtyTrac.

Of course, this slowdown in foreclosure sales is — at least in the short term — a good thing for the housing market, helping to keep home prices more stable, Sharga says.

"The downside is that this approach ensures that we will be in the doldrums in housing for several more years," he says.

Indeed, with such a large supply of distressed properties and foreclosures, the timing of a recovery hinges in part on how quickly banks and servicers dispose of these holdings.

Entire article:
http://realestate.msn.com/foreclosure-sales-slowdown-a-blessing-and-a-curse