SAN DIEGO — Recent headlines have talked about the amount of foreclosures in California jumping 50-70% higher than pandemic-era lows.
CBS 8’s Heather Myers looked at the foreclosure market in San Diego County and had an opportunity to tour a 15,000-square-foot mansion that is currently in foreclosure.
The mansion is located in the gated Alvarado Estates Community, near San Diego State University. The trees outside the home are overgrown and there is a giant lock on the front door.
The home has 8 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms and spectacular views of the Mission Valley area, including Snapdragon Stadium. In the rear of the home, there is a tennis court, basketball court, guest home and swimming pool. The pool is half empty and the water is green.
“Well originally the home was built in the 60's and it had a footprint of about 6,000 square feet. Then the owner enlarged it, expanded it to about 15,000 square feet,” said Sandy Hardcastle-Taylor, the listing agent. Hardcastle-Taylor says the story behind the foreclosure is not being made public. The asking price is $4,095,000.
“Like all foreclosures, the liens are not paid and after a certain period of time the lender will foreclose on a property that is not being paid for,” said Hardcastle-Taylor.
CBS 8 conducted a real estate records search and found there are only five homes in foreclosure on the market right now in San Diego County.
Under foreclosure
- The list includes the Alvarado Estates mansion.
- There is also a much more modest home in Spring Valley listed for just over $611,000 dollars.
- Another in Allied Gardens has 4 bedrooms and the description says it has a "potential oasis" in the backyard.
- Photos show an empty pool. It's listed for $937,000.
- Another on the list is in San Marcos and the description reads "needs cosmetic repairs." It's on the market for more than $1.1 million. The backyard swimming pool is green.
CBS 8 reached out to Attom, a nationwide property data company. Attom's records show that in all of 2023, there were 2,029 foreclosure filings in San Diego County.
That's only .84% higher than 2022, however, it’s 76% higher than in 2021 when many pandemic-era protections were still in place.
To put these numbers in perspective, during the height of the foreclosure crisis in 2008 there were over 45,000 properties in the county with a foreclosure filing.
In 2009, there were more than 49,000.
“We just aren't seeing it. I would be one of the first people to know because we would be getting the calls,” said Spencer Lugash, President of the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors. Lugash is also an attorney who specializes in bank-owned properties.
“When it comes to foreclosures, it’s just a matter of can they afford their payment? We are not seeing enough of an economic downturn that we are seeing any problems with people being able to afford their payment,” Lugash told CBS 8’s Heather Myers.
Lughash says since the housing crash of the early 2000's, regulations have gone into place to keep people from falling victim to predatory loans. He says since the interest rates have come down from the 8-percent range we saw in October, it's actually fueled the local housing market.
“So all that's going to do is start to create more excitement, more buyers bringing in more offers, bringing up property prices again. So if you were looking at waiting, I don't think that's the best idea for you right now,” said Lugash.
We asked realtor Sandy Hardcastle-Taylor if there are any deals out there right now?
“This is a deal, this is a screaming deal," she said about her listing in Alvardo Estates.
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