Clogged Pipes

From ForeclosureRadar by way of L.A. Land comes the observation that only a very small percentage of potential foreclosures are getting all the way through the process:

ForeclosureRadar has more evidence of a foreclosure backlog in its monthly data, released today: In May, a record 111,824 California homes were scheduled for foreclosure sales, but just 16% were auctioned. By comparison, last May, sales were held for 49% of homes slated for foreclosure. Of last month's postponed foreclosures, 40% were delayed at the request of the lender; an additional 33% were postponed by agreement between the lender and borrower.

As mentioned in an earlier post, the foreclosure pipeline is clogged and cannot handle the flow. I'll keep an eye out for any more color on why a lender would request a delay without an agreement with the borrower (other than the obvious reason of not having time to adequately prepare for the auction).