A real estate report issued today shows a rising level of foreclosures, but states that lenders are doing the economy a favor by managing the pace of foreclosures.
RealtyTrac’s U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for August shows foreclosures, including default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions were reported on 338,836 properties nationwide for the month. One in 381 housing units received a foreclosure filing in August. The total number of foreclosures is marks a 4% increase from the previous month. However, the number of foreclosures actually dropped 5% decrease from August 2009.
“The trend lines of decreasing default notices and increasing bank repossessions converged in August, with virtually the same number of new default notices and bank repossessions for the month — a clear indication that the clogged foreclosure pipeline is being carefully managed on both ends by lenders and servicers,” James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac, said in a statement. “On the front end, seriously delinquent loans are rolling into foreclosure at an unusually slow rate, while on the back end the dammed-up inventory of properties already in foreclosure is moving to REO in steady stream rather than a flood — presumably to prevent further erosion of home prices.”
California had the fourth highest foreclosure rate in the state, with one in every 194 California housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. California accounted for 20% of the nation’s foreclosure filings in August. The state’s 69,143 a foreclosure filings in August marks a 3% increase from July. However, the state saw a 25% decrease from August 2009.
Despite seeing a decrease in August, Nevada had the nation’s highest state foreclosure rate with one in every 84 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. Florida foreclosure activity also fell on a year-over-year basis, but the state still claimed the nation’s second highest rate with one in 155 Florida housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. With one in every 165 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing, Arizona laid claim to the nation’s third highest state foreclosure rate. Other states with high foreclosure rankings include Utah, Georgia, Michigan, Illinois and Hawaii.
Trulia.com is reporting that 26% of the homes for sale in the U.S. are being offered at discounts. That figure is up from 24% in July. A real estate blog on Forbes notes that “the market has weakened considerably since the U.S. government’s first-time homebuyers tax credit expired on April 30.”
A San Francisco Chronicle article quotes a housing expert who states the housing slump will last another three years, primarily due to being “dragged down by another 12 million distressed properties hitting the market.”