Although there are signs the economy is improving, one realtor says when it comes to the housing market, they are starting to see more and more foreclosures again.
The state legislature passed AB 284 last October, making it harder for lenders to process paperwork and foreclose on homes.
Kevin Sigstad is the president of the Reno-Sparks Association of Realtors. He said lenders are finally starting to find a way to process that paperwork a little bit faster.
"We are seeing 20 to 40 new foreclosures every other week," said Sigstad. "We were at a point where we were doing about 550 foreclosures a month. Right now, we are only back up to about 80 to a 100 a month. So we got a ways to go."
Another huge factor involves a mortgage settlement in which the country's five largest lenders were convicted of signing foreclosure documents without a notary present, which is illegal.
After months of negotiation, 49 state attorneys general and the federal government reached an agreement on a historic joint settlement.
It includes benefits for lenders if they help homeowners that are underwater.
"They get credits toward their penalties for doing loan modifications, principal reductions and short sales. So, they are being encouraged to work with the homeowners to try and keep them in their homes or at least help them through a short sale."
You can watch the entire interview on Face the State Saturday at 4:30am and 3pm or Sunday at 6:30am and 3:30pm.
Written by Chris Ciarlo
