New South Florida Threshold: 100,000 Bank Repos Since 2007

MIAMI, FL---More than 100,000 properties - or an average of 2,300 per month - have been repossessed in the tricounty South Florida region since the real estate crash began in 2007, according to a new report from
CondoVultures.com.

Lenders surpassed the 100,000 threshold on Thursday, Aug. 19, when 317 properties were repossessed in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, according to the report based on the Condo Vultures® Foreclosure Database™.

For the year through Aug. 20, lenders have taken back more than 33,600 South Florida properties, which already outpaces the 30,400 tricounty properties repossessed in 2009 and the nearly 26,250 in 2008, according to the report based on the government records from Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.

"To get a grasp of South Florida's real estate crash, consider that lenders have repossessed an average of 75 properties per day since January 2007, which is a span of more than 1,300 days," said Peter Zalewski, (middle right photo)  a principal with the Bal Harbour, Fla.-based real estate consultancy Condo Vultures® LLC.

"For context, consider that lenders are repossessing about 40 percent of all South Florida properties where a foreclosure filing has been initiated by a lender. Going forward, we expect the number of bank repossessions to slow as foreclosure filings for the year are down by about one-third in 2010 compared to 2009."

Condo Vultures® is hosting a Sept. 14 seminar entitled "Concerns Grow About Possible Double Dip In South Florida Real Estate" with three local experts who will explore the possibility that a further erosion of consumer confidence will play a factor in another residential market tumble.

Peter Zalewski of Condo Vultures® can be reached at 800-750-0517 or by email at peter@condovultures.com.