IRVINE, Calif. – The number of U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure fell 10 percent last month, in the largest decline in more than a year and a half, according to RealtyTrac Inc.
“The 10-percent drop in November is the first double-digit monthly decrease we’ve seen since April 2006,” CEO James J. Saccacio said in the company’s November 2007 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. “This could indicate that foreclosure activity has topped out for the year.”
Still, the 201,950 foreclosure actions reported nationwide last month – including default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions – amounted to nearly 68 percent more than in November 2006, RealtyTrac said. And the national foreclosure rate for the month was 1 filing for every 617 households.
The nation’s highest foreclosure rate was in Nevada for the 11th consecutive month; the state’s rate of 1 filing for every 152 households was more than four times the national average. Florida moved up one spot to No. 2, with 1 filing for every 282 households. Ohio also moved up one spot, to No. 3, even as its foreclosure rate fell 3 percent to 1 filing for every 307 households. Filling out the Top 10 were Colorado, California, Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, Indiana and Illinois.
Rhode Island’s ranking improved one notch to 29th highest as the foreclosure rate declined to 1 for every 1,513 households. (The previous month saw 1 filing per 1,237 households.) A total of 296 foreclosure actions were reported in the Ocean State last month, 8.2 percent fewer than in October.
But Massachusetts’ rating worsened to 15th highest nationwide from the previous month’s ranking of 19th highest, as the Bay State foreclosure rate rose to 1 for every 801 households. (In October, the state had 1 filing per 926 households.) Total foreclosure actions reported in the Bay State increased 15.6 percent compared with October to 3,357 in November.
“The true test of whether this ceiling will hold will come at the beginning of next year – when we anticipate that a seasonal surge in foreclosure filings and another possible wave of resetting mortgages could place further pressure on the housing market,” Saccacio said. “But if the trend of flat or decreasing foreclosure activity we’ve seen over the past three months continues in the first quarter, it would certainly bode well for 2008”
RealtyTrac Inc. is a publisher of data and advice for real estate markets nationwide. To learn more, visit www.RealtyTrac.com.
