BluegrassForeclosure.com

From Business First:  Kentucky real estate investors looking for a bargain are in the right state, according to a report released this week by foreclosure tracker RealtyTrac.

The company found that during the first quarter of 2010, foreclosed properties in Kentucky were among the most discounted in sale price.

And, while sales of foreclosed properties fell nationally, Kentucky’s rate of foreclosure sales rose.

RealtyTrac reported 1,028 sales of foreclosed properties during the first quarter, a 19 percent increase from a year earlier and a 6.2 percent increase from the fourth quarter 2010.

Across the United States, there were a total of 232,959 U.S. properties in some stage of foreclosure — default, scheduled for auction or bank-owned — sold to third parties during the first quarter. That was down 33 percent from a year earlier and down 14 percent from the fourth quarter 2009.

According to the report, sales of foreclosed properties in Kentucky equated to about 19 percent of all real estate sales during the first quarter, compared with the U.S. average of 31 percent.

The average sales price of foreclosed properties in Kentucky was $94,651, an average discount of 39.2 percent.

In terms of average discount on foreclosure sales, Kentucky ranked behind only Ohio (39.5 percent) during the first quarter, RealtyTrac reported. The U.S. average was 26.7 percent.

Sales of bank-owned properties generated an even steeper discount, according to the report. In Kentucky, bank-owned properties sold for an average discount of 45.9 percent, and the average discount on pre-foreclosed properties — those in default or lis pendens — was 26.5 percent. The U.S. average discount on pre-foreclosure sales was 14.8 percent.