- Wendy Culverwell
- Business Journal staff writer- Portland Business Journal
- Jan 14, 2013, 10:18am PST
Foreclosure rates rose 30 percent in December in 24 counties tracked by Gorilla Capital Inc., a Eugene firm that specializes in buying distressed properties, repairing them and selling them.
Gorilla tracked 681 court-supervised foreclosures in December, compared to 446 in November and 522 in October.
John Helmick, CEO, said new Oregon legislation that took effect in July that requires mediation in nonjudicial foreclosure is driving lenders to opt for the judicial route instead.
The new law, “(L)ed to a paradigm shift and more lenders choosing the court process for more than 90 percent of the foreclosure filings in the state,” he said.
In the Portland area, Gorilla tracked 98 judicial foreclosures in Clackamas County, 144 in Multnomah County, 72 in Washington County and 21 in Yamhill County.
Helmick noted that although lenders are taking their cases to court, the overall foreclosure rate is declining based on fewer notices of default and sale foreclosure numbers. He called it a sign that the housing market is “beginning to heal.”
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