Thursday, April 14, 2011

Foreclosure Filings Hit 3-Year Low: Report

U.S. foreclosure filings fell in the first quarter to the lowest level since early 2008 amid an ongoing backlog following last year's halt in activity, according to a RealtyTrac report on Thursday.


Foreclosure

Default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions were reported on 681,153 properties, down 14.8 percent from the previous quarter and a drop of 26.9 percent from the first quarter of 2010. 

It was the lowest level of foreclosures since the first quarter of 2008. 

One in every 191 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing during the quarter. For March, foreclosure filings rose 6.5 percent to 239,795, but were still down 34.7 percent from March the year before. First-time default notices jumped 17 percent in the quarter and 16 percent in March. 

Foreclosures slowed with lenders seizing 215,046 homes in the first quarter, down 6 percent from the previous quarter. But in states that primarily use a non-judicial foreclosure process, bank repossessions increased 9 percent. 

Rick Sharga, senior vice president at RealtyTrac, said this increase might be the beginning of getting back to a more accurate foreclosure rate. 

"Clearly these ongoing processing issues are having a dampening effect on foreclosure activity," said Sharga. "The most likely outcome of this is we see an even more protracted period of high levels of foreclosures weighing down the housing market." 

Investigations into the foreclosure process prompted temporary halts from some servicers late last year, creating a bottleneck as paperwork is refiled. 

Nevada maintained the highest U.S. state foreclosure rate as one in every 35 homes had a foreclosure filing. California alone accounted for nearly a quarter of overall foreclosure activity.

Original Article

Ken Keegan Real Estate Broker
(910) 523-0903 mobile
Email Me
www.KenKeegan.com
Click here for more information on Brunswick, County Real Estate
St. James Plantation

No comments:

Post a Comment