Foreclosure notices in metro Atlanta jumped to a record high this month. There were 12,568 foreclosure notices in the 13-county metro area for March. This is 22 percent more than February’s 10,318 published notices and 24 percent more than the 10,138 advertised a year ago, according to Alpharetta-based Equity Depot. Equity Depot tracks notices published each month for public auctions scheduled for the following month. March’s numbers count the homes set for auction in April. Not all the listed homes will actually be foreclosed upon, as some homeowners catch up on payments or work out deals with lenders. The largest number of foreclosures published prior to this month was 12,318 in September of 2009.

There are mixed opinions on why the increase occured. Some think that a lot of financial institutions that held off on foreclosures during the holiday season last year are now moving forward again. Others think that the jump is a sign that the high unemployment is taking a toll, that basically people are losing jobs and can't make payments. To provide a frame of reference, Georgia has lost 375,000 jobs in two years – more than 8 percent of all positions. Metro Atlanta's jobless rate in January climbed to 10.8 percent – also a record in the four decades in which consistent data has been kept. Nearly a half-million Georgians are officially out of work, not counting 99,000 people who have dropped out of the workforce or left the state, according to government figures.

What this means for the real estate market is that we are about to see another increase in supply of foreclosure listings. Banks take about 4-6 weeks to list a property after the foreclosure auction occurs, so we should expect to see this surge begin by mid April. This is great timing for buyers that want to take advantage of the current home buyer tax credits. You need to be under contract by the end of April and close by the end of May to receive up to a $8,000 credit for first time buyers and up to a $6,500 credit for repeat buyers.

If you think you are facing foreclosure, a short sale might be a better option for you. Contact me today to discuss your options. If you would like to take advantage of purchasing a home during this buyers market, contact me today for a buyer consultation or begin your search for homes on my website.