New York's foreclosure backlog is finally showing signs of shifting

According to a new report by real estate data website RealtyTrac, the number of New York foreclosure auctions that were scheduled in May increased 118% from a year earlier. It indicates that foreclosures, which have been locked in a state of uncertainty for years, are ultimately starting to cross the obstacles.

According to Daren Blomquist, a vice president at RealtyTrac, "Lenders are finally pushing those properties through the foreclosure pipeline and completing the process. Banks have finally gotten their documentation ducks in a row on some of the tough foreclosure cases".

The increase in auctions comes in the middle of huge political pressure to start bringing foreclosures in New York. The city has one of the largest backlogs of felonious home loans of any state.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, in the first quarter of 2015, over 5.5% of mortgages in New York were in some stage of foreclosure.

Gov. Cuomo and state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman have asked for policy changes that would prevent the increase of zombie homes, i. e. those properties that have been vacated by foreclosed-on residents, however not yet recovered by the bank.

Blomquist said that it's also good for the banks to sell these properties as soon as possible, before situation in market changes. He said that it is good to sell even these old distressed properties in the market and that too at a good price.

All over the country, foreclosure filings were increased 16% from a year ago in May, hitting a 19-month high.