There have been more foreclosure filings in the first seven months of this year than the previous annual record of 2,620 set in 2007. And it appears that there is a growing trend of foreclosure lawsuits being filed on properties in East Manatee.

According to a Bradenton Herald analysis of the July filings, foreclosure suits were heavily concentrated in East Manatee and Parrish, with the most filings occurring in two Lakewood Ranch neighborhoods.

Milt Flinn, president of Lakewood Ranch Realty and a licensed real estate broker, said he has actually seen more short sales in Lakewood Ranch than foreclosures. A short sale is when a bank or mortgage lender agrees to sell a home for less than the loan balance.

Of the existing 380 real estate listings in Lakewood Ranch, Flinn said there were approximately 30 short sales.

"One of the reasons there might be a higher number foreclosures in Greenbrook or Summerfield is because they are very big neighborhoods. For example, in Greenbrook, I think there are 1,600 homes," Flinn said. "But what we are seeing more of are short sales. And most of the time it is on an investment property that somebody usually purchased when the market was really hot in 2005."

These are homes that have sat on the market for months and the mortgage has caught up with the owner, Flinn said.

"They are situations where people have two houses, not necessarily people being thrown out of their houses," he said. "We just have some investors who went too far out in buying property when the market was really hot."

Other neighborhoods in Manatee County with multiple properties being foreclosed on last month were Bayshore Gardens with eight, Aberdeen with seven, and Greyhawk Landing, Lexington and Mill Creek with six each.

Andrew Mooney, a bankruptcy attorney in Bradenton, said he has between 15 to 20 people each week in his office facing foreclosures.

"The majority of the calls that I get right now are bankruptcies and people trying to either save their house from foreclosure or just wanting to get rid of the liability of an upside down mortgage," he said. "Generally, if people want to save their home, Chapter 13 bankruptcy is available. But unfortunately because of the nature of these mortgages, a lot of people, even in a Chapter 13, can't work out an acceptable plan. And it seems like it is getting worse."

John Hanlon, assistant vice president of lending at Community Bank of Manatee, is still hopeful that the real estate market will begin to stabilize.

"There is a little bit of a shakeout, but these things always happen when the economy goes bad," he said. "At some point, these properties will sell again and that will reduce the inventory of available properties. Once we work through this bubble of foreclosures, then I think you will start seeing an uptick again."