Foreclosure activity in New Jersey decreased in January to 6,146 properties with foreclosure filings, a 39 percent decline from December 2009, but still up 23 percent from January 2009, according to the latest RealtyTrac® U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. “New Jersey welcomed a decline in foreclosure filings in January, though the level of activity remained well above what was reported for this time last year,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “With New Jersey’s unemployment hovering at 9.8 percent, the state’s struggling homeowners aren’t likely to feel any real sense of relief for some time to come.” Complete Story

While many efforts to encourage mortgage modifications have been tried during the past three years, the state of Oregon has come up with something original and unique: It's moving forward with an idea that costs taxpayers nothing and will, er, motivate many lenders to write down loans. Passed in the Oregon house by a vote of 58 to 0, and in the state senate by unanimous consent, HB 3656 doesn't fool around with cash payments to lenders or other niceties. Instead, the deal is very simple: In a foreclosure action the right of a piggyback second lender to sue for a deficiency judgment is eliminated. Complete Story

Every week, tens of millions of dollars worth of foreclosed real estate is sold nationwide at sheriff’s sales and trustee’s sales, and savvy investors are finding a few golden bargains mixed in with many lumps of coal at these public foreclosure auctions. Investor Gregory Metcalf in Orange County, Calif., said sometimes he’ll scoop up five or six properties in a day. “This is a highly specialized area of real estate,” warned Metcalf, who buys 500 to 600 properties a year. “You would be foolish not to get training to learn how to work courthouse auctions … because if you make a mistake here you’ll get killed.”