The number of forced sales last year reached the highest levels since records began, averaging more than eight mortgagee sales every day. The data, released by Terralink International, showed 3024 registered mortgagee sales during 2009. That compared with 1303 in 2008 and 475 in 2007. Mike Donald, Terralink managing director, said: “The worst affected areas were the regions that include our biggest cities, Auckland and Canterbury … The hardest-hit smaller regions were Northland (up from 28 mortgagee sales in 2007 to 222 in 2009), and Hawke’s Bay (17 in 2007 to 131 in 2009).” Mr Donald did not expect the number of mortgagee sales to decline significantly until at least the last quarter of 2010. Terralink derives its mortgagee data from legal registrations of actual mortgagee sales. – Otago Daily Times