There Are More Than 1,300 Homes In The Foreclosure Process In Suisun City

In almost every neighborhood of Suisun City, evidence of the housing market collapse has at some point been plain to see: An abandoned house in foreclosure or a for sale sign announcing a short sale.

There are, no doubt, many more households where the owners are worrying about their ability to make the mortgage in this economy.

According to RealtyTrac.com, as of Nov. 20 there were 1,371 homes in town that are in some stage of the foreclosure process: First there are 510 homeowner defaults on their mortgage, typically by owing at least three months of payments, next there are 373 homes in auction or trustee sale, then finally there are 488 sale-listed bank-owned homes, the final stage of foreclosure.

Suisun City real estate agent Naomi Pruitt says those numbers may be just a large portion of the real foreclosure market in Suisun City. She said a “phantom” market exists as well.

"There's a lot of phantom inventory out there which means they've been foreclosed (on) but (the home is) not on the market yet.”

But homeowners aren’t the only ones affected by the down market. Local and state governments saw property tax receipts plummet since the housing market crashed, pushing some cities to cut vital police and fire departments as a result.

What’s your foreclosure story? What’s happened to your street or neighborhood? Tell us in the comments.

In Suisun City, where officials are trying to figure out how to close an estimated $1.4 million deficit, it can be argued that the state’s elimination of redevelopment agencies has more of a fiscal impact on the city than property tax receipts, however, Mayor Pete Sanchez said in a small town with a small budget, every penny counts.

"Actually, our structural deficit is due in part to lower property taxes and foreclosures,” he said. “As you know, when houses are foreclosed on the sale price of the homes in the surrounding area go down.”

Sanchez said foreclosures affects resident morale, too, because of turnover in the make-up of the neighborhood. Longtime neighbors may get foreclosed on or have to sell a home in a short sale, where they may get part of the cost of their mortgage in the sale of the home.

City Councilman Mike Segala has sent he same thing.

"What I have heard and with people that I have known, is that going through a foreclosure because the house is upside down or through loss of a job, is traumatic,” he said. “… I think when someone has to move from a neighborhood in these situations it has an impact on the neighborhood because of the people you just get up every day and see. People that you may have gone camping with or fishing with because they were your neighbors -- that could become a gap."

In the end, new neighbors may move in and not everybody may know who everybody else is. This affects crime because neighbors are no longer sure who is supposed to be on the street and who isn’t, Sanchez said.

"I feel sorry for those who bought into the value of their homes (during the bubble),” Sanchez said, noting foreclosures in his neighborhood in east Lawler Ranch.

But not everyone was a victim in the housing bubble, some people abused easy credit to buy things they couldn’t afford, like boats and second homes. City Councilman Sam Derting says he knew people who did just that.

"They had a lot of equity in their house and they took out loans on it,” he said. “What people forget is when they take out a loan they have to pay it back.”

Whether and when the housing market will stabilize and become healthier is anyone’s guess, but one thing is for sure: There isn’t much the city can do about it, except put pressure on the banks to maintain the yards of foreclosed properties.

"We're just one spoke in the wheel,” Derting said. “That's all we are, we can pick up the bad guys, keep the street lights on and keep things running.”

Sanchez said he is surprised about new homes being built between Fairfield and Vacaville, but Segala said he is not surprised.

“People are still interested in buying new homes in Solano County and they are coming from San Joaquin, Contra Costa, and Sacramento counties."