Bank-owned u.s. Home sales stay high in q2-report

The number of sales of bank-owned U.S. homes remained high in the second quarter, while sales of homes in default or scheduled for auction rose compared to the previous quarter, a RealtyTrac report said on Thursday.

Overall sales of homes in some stage of foreclosure or owned by banks totaled 265,087, up 6.5 percent from a revised 248,959 in the first quarter. First-quarter sales were originally reported as 158,434.

"In the face of an overall market where we're seeing home sales declining, the fact that we're seeing an increased number of distressed properties being sold suggests the market is correcting the way it needs to," said Rick Sharga, senior vice president at RealtyTrac.

The glut of unsold homes is one of the biggest challenges for the housing market that is still struggling to recover from its collapse in 2007.

Source: UK.Reuters.com