Foreclosure-related sales double in select metros

Motivated sales -- defined as sales to third parties at foreclosure auctions and sales of foreclosed homes by financial institutions and foreclosure service firms -- accounted for about one-third of all transactions in 25 metro areas tracked by data and analytics company Radar Logic, according to a report for January 2009 released this month. Radar Logic noted that the growth of motivated sales as a share of total transactions contributed to a 23 percent year-over-year decline in a composite price-per-square-foot index (the RPX index) for the 25 metro areas tracked from January 2008 to January 2009. And the volume of motivated sales grew 119 percent from January 2008 to January 2009 in the reported market areas, according to the monthly. The decline in home sales slowed to 6 percent on a year-over-year basis in January for the 25 market areas, compared to 36 percent from January 2007 to January 2008. Radar Logic reported that home prices fell in 24 of 25 metro areas track...