County Posts 13% Drop in Foreclosures

Ventura County had the best record in Southern California in the first five months of the year in terms of reduced foreclosure proceedings against homeowners.

From January through May, lenders started proceedings against owners of 1,182 homes in the county--nearly 13% fewer than in the same period in 1993, according to Dataquick Information Systems. By contrast, filings fell less than 1% in Los Angeles County and increased more than 17% in San Bernardino County in the same period.

In fact, only two California counties showed steeper drops than Ventura County in foreclosure actions--Madera, in the San Joaquin Valley, with 15%, and Monterey, with 27%.

Stabilizing home prices are helping reduce foreclosures, Dataquick suggests. “Foreclosures become more of a problem when the value of a property decreases to where the homeowner owes more on the home than its market value,” said Donald L. Cohn, the reporting service’s chief executive.

In related news, the Simi Valley-Moorpark Assn. of Realtors says resales of single-family homes in May rose 2% from the previous month and 7% from May, 1993. The average selling price in May was $212,000, down 1% from the previous month and down 3% from May, 1993.

However, condominium resales in May were off 26% from April and 39% from May, 1993. Average condominium prices in May fell 8% from April and 19% from May, 1993, to $119,600.