Distressed home sales rose in 2008

Distressed home sales in some U.S. markets made up more than half the house sale transactions last year, a real estate research group said.

In Madera, Calif., 53.4 percent of all home sales in 2008 involved foreclosed homes, CNNMoney.com reported Tuesday. Another 4.8 percent involved short sales, transactions in which the sales price does not cover the seller’s debt on the house.

Across the country, 20 percent of the year’s sales involved foreclosed properties, while 11 percent involved short sales, research from Zillow.com revealed.

The pace at which value is being erased from the U.S. housing stock is rapidly increasing, said Zillow Vice President Stan Humphries.

The escalating rate of home value declines shows up in big numbers on a national scale. In 2008, $3.3 trillion in home equity disappeared with $1.4 trillion of that erased in the fourth quarter.

More value (was) wiped out in the fourth quarter of 2008 than was eliminated in all of 2007, Humphries said.

Currently, 17.6 percent of all U.S. homes are valued less than the mortgage debt, a situation defined as being underwater.

In the hardest-hit market, 61.4 percent of the homes in Las Vegas are now underwater, the report said.