Q3 Foreclosure Activity Up 71 Percent, RealtyTrac Reports
Monday, November 03, 2008
RealtyTrac released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for September 2008 and Q3 2008 on Thursday, a timely disclosure considering lawmakers are sitting down with federal banking regulators on Capitol Hill today to discuss a national effort to help struggling homeowners and their lenders prevent foreclosure.
According to RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings – including default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions – were reported on 765,558 U.S. properties during the third quarter of 2008, up more than 3 percent from the second quarter and up 71 percent from the third quarter of 2007. The online marketer of foreclosure properties said that since August 2007, 851,000 homes have been repossessed by lenders.
Foreclosure filings actually decreased 12 percent in the month of September, but that drop was from an all-time record high in August. On an annual basis, RealtyTrac reported a 21 percent increase in foreclosures for September. All in all, 265,968 properties received a filing in September – that's one in every 475 U.S. housing units. A total of 81,312 homes were repossessed during the one month period.
RealtyTrac's CEO James J. Saccacio said that much of the 12 percent decrease in September can be attributed to changes in state laws and regulations surrounding the foreclosure process. The amendments have “temporarily slowed down the pace at which lenders are moving forward with foreclosures,” Saccacio said.
Specifically, Saccacio pointed to SB 1137 in California, which took effect in early September and requires lenders to make contact with borrowers at least 30 days before filing a Notice of Default (NOD). “In September we saw California NODs drop 51 percent from the previous month, and that drop had a significant impact on the national numbers given that California accounts for close to one-third of the nation’s foreclosure activity each month,” Saccacio explained.
North Carolina is another noteworthy example. State legislation was signed into law in August that requires lenders to give homeowners and North Carolina’s banking commissioner a 45-day notice prior to filing a Notice of Default. “We saw NODs drop 66 percent in North Carolina in September,” Saccacio said.
“On the other hand, initial foreclosure filings in Massachusetts jumped 465 percent from August to September after being much lower than normal in June, July and August,” Saccacio added. He contributes that temporary lull in Massachusetts numbers to a new law that took effect in May, requiring lenders to give homeowners a 90-day right-to-cure notice before initiating foreclosure. “But in September, about 90 days after the law took effect, initial foreclosure notices jumped back up close to the level we were seeing earlier in the year,” Saccacio said.
Nevada continued to document the nation’s highest state foreclosure rate in September, with filings at more than five times the national average, RealtyTrac reported. Florida took the No. 2 spot in September, and although California saw a 32 percent decrease in filings from August to September, its foreclosure rate slipped only one place, to third highest. Other states with foreclosure rates ranking among the top 10 in September were Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, and Colorado.
According to RealtyTrac's data, six states accounted for more than 60 percent of U.S. foreclosure activity in the third quarter. California alone accounted for more than 27 percent of the nation’s foreclosure activity, with 210,845 properties receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter. Filings were reported on 127,306 Florida properties during the third quarter, the second highest state total. Arizona documented the third highest with 40,419 properties receiving a foreclosure filing. Ohio, Michigan and Nevada round out the six, all reporting foreclosure filings on more than 30,000 properties during the third quarter.
To view RealtyTrac's full report, including market data by state, click here.
According to RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings – including default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions – were reported on 765,558 U.S. properties during the third quarter of 2008, up more than 3 percent from the second quarter and up 71 percent from the third quarter of 2007. The online marketer of foreclosure properties said that since August 2007, 851,000 homes have been repossessed by lenders.
Foreclosure filings actually decreased 12 percent in the month of September, but that drop was from an all-time record high in August. On an annual basis, RealtyTrac reported a 21 percent increase in foreclosures for September. All in all, 265,968 properties received a filing in September – that's one in every 475 U.S. housing units. A total of 81,312 homes were repossessed during the one month period.
RealtyTrac's CEO James J. Saccacio said that much of the 12 percent decrease in September can be attributed to changes in state laws and regulations surrounding the foreclosure process. The amendments have “temporarily slowed down the pace at which lenders are moving forward with foreclosures,” Saccacio said.
Specifically, Saccacio pointed to SB 1137 in California, which took effect in early September and requires lenders to make contact with borrowers at least 30 days before filing a Notice of Default (NOD). “In September we saw California NODs drop 51 percent from the previous month, and that drop had a significant impact on the national numbers given that California accounts for close to one-third of the nation’s foreclosure activity each month,” Saccacio explained.
North Carolina is another noteworthy example. State legislation was signed into law in August that requires lenders to give homeowners and North Carolina’s banking commissioner a 45-day notice prior to filing a Notice of Default. “We saw NODs drop 66 percent in North Carolina in September,” Saccacio said.
“On the other hand, initial foreclosure filings in Massachusetts jumped 465 percent from August to September after being much lower than normal in June, July and August,” Saccacio added. He contributes that temporary lull in Massachusetts numbers to a new law that took effect in May, requiring lenders to give homeowners a 90-day right-to-cure notice before initiating foreclosure. “But in September, about 90 days after the law took effect, initial foreclosure notices jumped back up close to the level we were seeing earlier in the year,” Saccacio said.
Nevada continued to document the nation’s highest state foreclosure rate in September, with filings at more than five times the national average, RealtyTrac reported. Florida took the No. 2 spot in September, and although California saw a 32 percent decrease in filings from August to September, its foreclosure rate slipped only one place, to third highest. Other states with foreclosure rates ranking among the top 10 in September were Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, and Colorado.
According to RealtyTrac's data, six states accounted for more than 60 percent of U.S. foreclosure activity in the third quarter. California alone accounted for more than 27 percent of the nation’s foreclosure activity, with 210,845 properties receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter. Filings were reported on 127,306 Florida properties during the third quarter, the second highest state total. Arizona documented the third highest with 40,419 properties receiving a foreclosure filing. Ohio, Michigan and Nevada round out the six, all reporting foreclosure filings on more than 30,000 properties during the third quarter.
To view RealtyTrac's full report, including market data by state, click here.
