Palm Beach Post
Thursday, November 3, 2011
WEST PALM BEACH — More than half of Florida homeowners in foreclosure have not made a mortgage payment in at least two years. That's higher than the national average and one indication of why banks are paying borrowers up to $20,000 to execute a short sale.
A new report from Jacksonville-based LPS Applied Analytics found that as of September, 56 percent of Florida's mortgages in foreclosure are 24 months or more behind in payments, compared with 39 percent nationwide.
About 84 percent of Florida foreclosures are more than 18 months in arrears.
Considering recent figures that estimate the time from initial filing to auction at 676 days in Florida, LPS senior vice president Herb Blecher said he's not shocked by the mounting late payments.
In January 2010, just 19 percent of Florida's foreclosures were 24 months or more delinquent ...