Foreclosure Auctions Data

Why is foreclosure auctions data important?

Completed foreclosure auctions data can be used to understand the flow year-over-year of REO properties into a market, how third-party demand at auction is different for different property types, and to understand the density of REO activity in a given year across geographies. The level of completed foreclosure auctions activity in a neighborhood relative to other areas is an indicator of distress in a local housing market and is related to high levels of foreclosure-related distressed property sales.

IHS uses parcel-level data on completed foreclosure auction activity to:

• Assess the inventory of REO properties
• Understand the characteristics of sales out of REO inventory

Aggregated data are available on the IHS Data Portal for metro area counties, metro areas municipalities, Cook County subregions, Cook County municipalities, and City of Chicago wards and community areas.  For Cook County subregions and municipalities and City of Chicago community areas and wards, data are also available across property types. Data are available from 2005, allowing for analysis of trends in this indicator to be examined over time.

Subtypes available on the IHS Data Portal

• Total Auction Activity. Total foreclosure auction activity in a given year is available for all residential properties and is broken out separately for total foreclosure auction activity on single family homes, condominium units, two-to-four unit buildings, and in buildings with five or more units.
• Share of Auctions Resulting in REO. The share of foreclosure auctions resulting in REO in a given year is available for all residential properties and is broken out separately for total REO activity in single family homes, condominium units, two-to-four unit buildings, and in buildings with five or more units.
• REO per 100 Residential Parcels. Per-parcel REO allows for comparison of properties entering REO status across geographies. 

About the Data

Data on completed foreclosure auctions activity is collected from the Cook County Recorder of Deeds via Property Insight. The underlying data on foreclosure auctions include information on the recording and executed date of the transaction, the sales price, and information on buyer and the seller.

IHS identifies the foreclosure auction as a property transfer and records the outcome of the auction using characteristics of the sale. IHS then connects these data to information on the subject property using data from the county assessor offices.

From a public data perspective, the foreclosure auction is the end of the foreclosure process. At foreclosure auction, the subject property is put up for sale and the minimum bid is typically set at the amount of the outstanding mortgage plus fees. If the property is not purchased by a third party, the property enters the plaintiff’s inventory of real estate owned (REO) properties. A property in REO inventory becomes the responsibility of the plaintiff until it is eventually sold to a third party.