ForeclosureS.com Reports More Than 100,000 Homes Lost in August
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Nearly 102,000 homeowners lost their properties to foreclosure in August, up nearly 6 percent from July and more than 80 percent higher than in August 2007, according to data released earlier this week by ForeclosureS.com.
So far this year, lenders have repossessed a record 656,545 properties nationwide – or 8.6 of every 1,000 households in the United States – and remain on track to repossess more than 1 million nationwide by year-end, ForeclosureS.com reported.
Year-to-date 1.45 million homeowners have faced pre-foreclosure actions by lenders, almost double the number a year ago. ForeclosureS.com’s analysis of pre-foreclosure and foreclosure proceedings nationwide is based on the number of formal notices filed against a property during the foreclosure process. That can include notice of default, notice of foreclosure auction, and/or notice of REO. All pre-foreclosure filings do not end up in foreclosure.
According to Alexis McGee, president of ForeclosureS.com, there is some good news – pre-foreclosure actions by lenders slowed slightly from July, and more than half of the pre-foreclosure as well as REO activities can be attributed to three states: Arizona, California, and Florida.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), which last week announced more record mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates, also singled out California and Florida as culprits driving up the national numbers. The MBA reported 6.41 percent of all mortgage loans were delinquent in the second quarter, not including those in the foreclosure process. A total of 2.75 percent of loans were somewhere in the foreclosure process.
“While we continue to see record numbers of foreclosures and actions that may lead to foreclosure, and despite the higher 6.1 percent August unemployment rate, it does appear that the overall situation is beginning to stabilize,” McGee pointed out. “Importantly, many regions of the country – particularly the Northeast and Midwest – have seen less-dramatic increases in foreclosures and pre-foreclosure activity in 2008 compared with 2007.”
The Southwest region, in contrast, reported by far the most foreclosed property filings year-to-date – 348,019 or 12.7 filings per 1,000 households. The Southeast, meanwhile, leads the nation in pre-foreclosure actions with 477,177, or 27.5 filings per 1,000 households.
“For investors and first-time homebuyers, the reality is that there are a lot of opportunities,” McGee said. “People who watch the economic numbers and savvy investors and first-time homebuyers finally have begun to recognize that.”
So far this year, lenders have repossessed a record 656,545 properties nationwide – or 8.6 of every 1,000 households in the United States – and remain on track to repossess more than 1 million nationwide by year-end, ForeclosureS.com reported.
Year-to-date 1.45 million homeowners have faced pre-foreclosure actions by lenders, almost double the number a year ago. ForeclosureS.com’s analysis of pre-foreclosure and foreclosure proceedings nationwide is based on the number of formal notices filed against a property during the foreclosure process. That can include notice of default, notice of foreclosure auction, and/or notice of REO. All pre-foreclosure filings do not end up in foreclosure.
According to Alexis McGee, president of ForeclosureS.com, there is some good news – pre-foreclosure actions by lenders slowed slightly from July, and more than half of the pre-foreclosure as well as REO activities can be attributed to three states: Arizona, California, and Florida.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), which last week announced more record mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates, also singled out California and Florida as culprits driving up the national numbers. The MBA reported 6.41 percent of all mortgage loans were delinquent in the second quarter, not including those in the foreclosure process. A total of 2.75 percent of loans were somewhere in the foreclosure process.
“While we continue to see record numbers of foreclosures and actions that may lead to foreclosure, and despite the higher 6.1 percent August unemployment rate, it does appear that the overall situation is beginning to stabilize,” McGee pointed out. “Importantly, many regions of the country – particularly the Northeast and Midwest – have seen less-dramatic increases in foreclosures and pre-foreclosure activity in 2008 compared with 2007.”
The Southwest region, in contrast, reported by far the most foreclosed property filings year-to-date – 348,019 or 12.7 filings per 1,000 households. The Southeast, meanwhile, leads the nation in pre-foreclosure actions with 477,177, or 27.5 filings per 1,000 households.
“For investors and first-time homebuyers, the reality is that there are a lot of opportunities,” McGee said. “People who watch the economic numbers and savvy investors and first-time homebuyers finally have begun to recognize that.”
