Morning Briefing: Foreclosures inventory drops sharply

Foreclosures inventory drops sharply… Brooklyn now has retail space analysis… Brooklyn now has retail space analysis…

Foreclosures inventory drops sharply
The level of foreclosures inventory and completed foreclosures has dropped sharply in the past year. CoreLogic reports that inventory was down 25.2 per cent in the year to August 2015 while completed foreclosures dropped by 20.1 per cent. There were 46,000 foreclosures in August 2014 and 36,000 in August 2015. The foreclosure inventory was around 470,000 which is 1.2 per cent of all homes with a mortgage; in August 2014 the level was 629,000 or 1.6 per cent of all mortgaged homes. The data also shows that 3.5 per cent of homes with mortgages had arrears of more than 90 days, down 20.7 per cent from a year earlier.
 
Back to school season home sales surge in Mass.
The Massachusetts Association of Realtors reports that single-family home sales were up 35.9 per cent in September compared to the same month in 2014. The back to school season didn’t slow enthusiasm of property buyers and realtors report high levels of confidence in the market. There were 5,736 sales with a median price of $341,520 (up 5.1 per cent year-over-year.) For condos there was a 16.8 per cent rise in sales to 1,927 units while the median price was flat at $305,000.
 
Brooklyn now has retail space analysis
The Real Estate Board of New York has launched its inaugural Brooklyn Retail Report to provide analysis of ground floor asking rents in 15 of the borough’s top retail corridors. Williamsburg’s Bedford Avenue, between Grand Street and North 12th Street, registered the highest average asking rent of $347 per square foot. “Brooklyn is booming and the demand for ground floor retail space is playing a major role in its continued, dynamic growth,” said REBNY President John Banks. “Complementing our existing Manhattan Retail Report, the Brooklyn Retail Report will serve as a guide for better understanding the fast growing retail leasing landscape in the booming borough.” The report will be published twice per year.