By Dory Rand
February 8, 2013
New data from the Woodstock Institute show that completed foreclosure auctions in the Chicago area jumped to the highest level since the foreclosure crisis began in 2006.
The newly released fact sheet shows that completed auctions jumped 73.8 percent, from 20,281 in 2011 to more than 35,000 in 2012. Foreclosures had dropped as a result of the robosigning scandal, but now that a settlement has been reached, foreclosures are back on the rise.
The vast majority of foreclosed properties that reach auction do not sell and therefore become lender-owned, or real estate owned (REO). REO properties cause several problems for the neighborhoods and cities in which they are located.