Foreclosure- and bank-owned auction volume jumped to their highest levels in years, but buying activity didn't keep pace with the rise in inventory, according to the latest report from Auction.com. Meanwhile, mortgages held by the government-sponsored enterprises brought a 33% surge in auction inventory. Even with the noticeable growth, current auction volume is still running 39% below pre-Covid levels of first quarter 2020, the online platform said. Initial foreclosure sales values were at their most elevated since mid 2020 with a sharp jump in asking prices, it said. Buyers at REO auctions similarly paid 65.2% of estimated value on average in the fourth quarter.