Local realtors have reported that a big number of Saint Louis foreclosures, as well as houses in Kansas and in the rest of the state have remained unsold as February ends. They reported that the residential property market has come to an almost standstill. As the weather gets worse, realtors revealed that housing prices further declined and sales continued to tank for both new houses and existing dwellings. However, most of them are optimistic that home buying activities will pick up come spring.

With Missouri foreclosures piling up as buyers stay away from the market, the home building sector is also affected, realtors have added. They reported that housing starts have remained flat in Kansas City and in most Missouri markets, although house builders are reporting higher traffic, with more people inquiring about properties for sale. While the residential property market is barely moving, commercial real estate is reportedly showing some signs of life.

As bank foreclosure properties remain unnoticed, commercial properties are reportedly catching the eye of more investors. The segment has posted increasing sales since January and leasing activities are also said to be picking up. Vacancy rates among commercial structures in the state have gone down, although most commercial property owners are unable to initiate expansions and take advantage of the high activities mainly because of continuous increases in the prices of raw materials.

Analysts revealed that it is not only the market for real estate owned homes and newly built houses that have been affected by the cold weather, but also the retail sector. In Missouri and in neighboring states like Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming, retail sales have gone down. This forced a lot of retailers to cut down store hours and temporary layoff some of their workers. Sales of automobiles also declined as buyers stay indoors. Despite a slowdown in retail sales and house buying activities, both industries are confident that they will surge once the weather gets better.

Real estate experts are predicting huge improvements in buying activities involving bank foreclosure properties and newly-built houses in the coming spring as pent up demand makes up for the slow first two months. They also predict higher sales for the retail sector in a couple of months or so.

Cold Weather Kept Buyers of Bank Foreclosure Properties Indoors is a post from: Bank Foreclosures Information

The 24 banks collectively posted $139.4 million in foreclosure home inventories in the first quarter, a 48-percent jump from the $94.2 value in last year’s first quarter.

Also, seven banks posted over three percent of their current loans as nonperforming – three months or more in default. In last year’s first quarter, only two banks posted more than three percent in noncurrent loans.

Truman Bank had the highest percentage of noncurrent loans – 10.42 percent. Following is PrivateBank, with 4.2 percent nonperforming loans. The other five banks, namely Business Bank of Saint Louis, Pulaski Bank, Jefferson Bank and Trust, Bank of Washington and Saint Louis Bank, had a noncurrent rate ranging from 3.08 to 3.41 percent.

Meanwhile, Saint Louis regional, national and community banks performed poorly in their lending in the first quarter. Bad loans originated by 24 community banks jumped by a staggering 282 percent in the first quarter compared to last year’s first quarter. Similarly, bad loans provided by six national and regional banks also increased by a staggering 248 percent.

The community banks collectively posted $41.7 million in bad debts in the first quarter, compared to only $10.9 million in last year’s first quarter.

The national and regional banks operating in Saint Louis collectively had $4.9 billion in nonperforming loans, compared to $1.4 billion in last year’s first quarter.

Additionally, 18 community banks posted more nonperforming loans in this year’s first quarter compared to last year’s first quarter. The six national and regional banks operating in Saint Louis posted more noncurrent loans compared to last year’s first quarter.

In the meantime, Marshall & Ilsley, the Milwaukee-based parent firm of Southwest Bank of Saint Louis, has extended for the second time its foreclosure moratorium by three months to September 30 in an effort to help reduce foreclosure home inventories in Saint Louis.

The bank’s first three-month foreclosure moratorium was launched in December 2008 and was extended at the end of March. Only homeowners staying in their homes are qualified for the moratorium.

Marshall & Ilsley’s Homeowners Assistance Program is a foreclosure home prevention program that should be emulated by other mortgage banks to contain foreclosures not only in Saint Louis but in other cities.

Bank-Owned Foreclosure Home Inventories Rose in Saint Louis is a post from: Bank Foreclosures Information