Housing crisis is not over

Us: Is it over yet in O.C. and/or SoCal? Bruce: No, unfortunately it isn’t over. There are many property owners delinquent by over 18 months who have yet to be foreclosed on. The amount of inventory in the MLS is misleading. It looks like a much healthier market than it is. Someday soon, these delinquent properties will hit the market either as a short sale or an REO. In Riverside, about 65% of properties sold are either short sales or REOs. Former owners with a foreclosure or short sale on their record don’t re-enter the market as a buyer because they can get financing. For every 1,000 sales, Riverside needs to find 650 new buyers to replace those that are now non-buyers. For Orange County, it’s closer to 30%, or 300 new buyers. Both areas are seeing all-time record numbers when comparing percentage of distressed sales to normal sales. That ratio prevents price support partially because each sale removes a formerly capable buyer from the market.