Boston's foreclosure rate reached a 17-year low in 2019, dropping 61 percent in 2019 compared to 2018.
Across the city foreclosure executions went down from 103 in 2018 to 40 in 2019, according to city statistics. Comparatively, 1,215 foreclosures were executed in 2008 during the height of the housing crisis.
"I'm proud that through our work with homeowners, we have been able to reduce the number of foreclosures in Boston, and keep more families in their homes," said Mayor Marty Walsh via press release. "These results show that our programs and policies to prevent foreclosures and evictions are working. Housing stability is vital to ensuring Boston has strong neighborhoods and communities, and I want to thank the leadership and staff of the Boston Home Center and all of our provider partners who work so hard for Boston's homeowners every day."
The Boston Home Center is a division of the Department of Neighborhood Development that works with Boston homeowners at risk of foreclosure and provides money to foreclosure prevention programs, including Jamaica Plain-based ESAC, Urban Edge, ABCD/Mattapan Family Services, and Nuestra Communidad.
The city reported that the number of foreclosures executed against owner-occupant homeowners dropped to 17 in 2019 down from 35 in 2018. The remaining 23 executions for 2019 were to investor-owners.