Foreclosures Still Seen Hitting Prices from Wall Street Journal

By JAMES R. HAGERTY

More waves of foreclosures will keep downward pressure on home prices in parts of the U.S. over the next several years, two new studies project.

The studies—by John Burns Real Estate Consulting Inc. and Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC—both conclude that most efforts to modify loans with easier terms will delay, not prevent, the loss of homes to foreclosure.

The Treasury Department is expected to give its latest update this week on government efforts to avert foreclosures.

The John Burns study estimates that five million houses and condominiums on which mortgages are now delinquent will go through foreclosure or related procedures that put them on the market over the next few years. That would represent the bulk of the estimated 7.7 million households behind on their mortgage payments.