Foreclosure tracking firm RealtyTrac has been delivering lots of bad news this year, not least of which is some sobering numbers on Real Estate Owned properties or REOs. An REO is what happens when a home cannot be sold at auction and becomes the property of the lender.

These are bad because they indicate that the real estate market cannot absorb the number of foreclosures that are coming in. And there have been a lot of them. 255,129, according to RealtyTrac’s records.

Just how many homes are we talking about?

255,129 is more housing units than the entire city of New Orleans.

255,129 is enough housing to hold about 790,900 people, according to the average family size reported in the 2000 U.S. Census.

If those 790,900 people formed a city, “Bank Repossessionville” would be the 13th largest city in the U.S. Right in between Jacksonville, Florida and Indianapolis, Indiana.

The 13,674 houses owned by just one lender, Countrywide, are valued at 2,867,767,788.

So, if you’re in the market for a home, you might want to search for some REOs that no one else wants. There are lots to choose from, particularly in California, and there will surely be more to come.

RealtyTrac
(Photo:tlindenbaum)

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