The Honolulu Star Bulletin reports that February marked the second consecutive month in which foreclosures in Hawaii have dropped. Though the number of foreclosed homes remains high, this news comes as yet another indication that the state’s housing market is stabilizing.
RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace, reported today that there were 972 foreclosure filings in February, which represented a 25.4 percent drop from the previous month and an 81 percent gain from February 2009.
The February tally, which equated to one in every 528 Hawaii properties in some stage of foreclosure, was below the national rate of one in every 418 households, according to RealtyTrac. Hawaii’s month-to-month decreases break a pattern of steady increases dating back to 2009, said Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac’s marketing communications manager.
While this information comes as a strong and credible reason for optimism, skeptics are hesitant to mark this as a surefire turnaround. Any data set less than six months in length is often seen as too little information to truly forecast a full rebound in the housing market. Additionally, this data varies greatly from neighborhood to neighborhood across Oahu. Many Leeward communities such as Ewa Beach and Waianae are still posting higher than average foreclosures. Despite the cynicism, it cannot be argued that foreclosures are down, and home values are up; facts which the Hawaii Real Estate community has been aching to hear.
To view foreclosures throughout the state, check out Prudential Locations comprehensive Hawaii Foreclosure Listings
The entire Star Bulletin article may be accessed here: Hawaii foreclosures drop
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