Foreclosure Rates Decline for Third Straight Month

By:
Kirk Haverkamp | November 12, 2009

Foreclosure filings fell for the third consecutive month in October, but still remained at an elevated level, according to figures released today by RealtyTrac.

Foreclosing filings were reported on 333,292 U.S. properties in October, a decline of 3 percent from the month before. Even so, it was the eighth consecutive month that foreclosure filings exceeded 300,000 and the tally was still 19 percent over the October 2008 level.
 
“Three consecutive monthly declines is unprecedented for our report, and on first blush an indication that the foreclosure tide may be turning,” said James Saccacio, RealtyTrac CEO. “However, the fundamental forces driving foreclosure activity in this housing downturn — high-risk mortgages, negative equity, and unemployment — continue to loom over any nascent recovery. And despite all the efforts and resources directed at helping homeowners avoid foreclosure, we continue to see foreclosure activity levels that are substantially higher than a year ago in most states.”
 
An average of one U.S. home in 385 received a foreclosure filing in October, according to the survey. Foreclosure filings include actions taken at various points in the foreclosure process, specifically notices of default, notifications of sheriff’s auctions and actual repossessions.

Improvement seen in hardest-hit states

The good news was that monthly foreclosure rates declined in the nation’s three highest foreclosure states – Nevada, California and Florida – and represented yearly declines in Nevada and Florida for the first time since the housing downturn began.

Nevada continued to have the nation’s highest foreclosure rate, one home in 80, despite a 26 percent decline in foreclosures from the month before. In a positive sign, the number of foreclosure filings actually declined from one year earlier; the 13,842 Nevada foreclosure actions last month represented a 4 percent decline from the October 2008 level.
 
California had the state’s second-highest foreclosure rate, at one home in 156, followed by Florida at one home in 168. California’s 85,420 properties under foreclosure in October represented a 1 percent decrease from the month before, but a whopping 50 percent increase over October 2008. Florida’s 51,911 properties in foreclosure represented a 6 percent decline from September and 4 percent decline from the year before.
 
Rounding out the 10 states with the highest foreclosure levels were Arizona, Idaho, Illinois, Michigan, Georgia, Maryland and Utah. Four states - California, Florida, Illinois and Michigan – accounted for 52 percent of all U.S. foreclosures in October.
 

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