Spike in foreclosures could hurt home values

After months of holding back, banks appear ready to take houses away from delinquent homeowners and add them to an already depressed real estate market, likely pushing values even lower. New data show foreclosure activity jumped sharply in June in MetroWest and the Milford area. In 26 towns, foreclosure petitions – or the start of the foreclosure process – rose 81 percent from May to June, according to The Warren Group, a Boston-based company that tracks real estate data. The change was particularly pronounced in Milford and 11 surrounding towns, where foreclosure petitions nearly tripled, rising from nine in May to 26 in June. “Real estate values...