Foreclosures hit Important Milestone; Concerning Trends in Some States

It has been a long eight years, butrnforeclosure activity appears to have returned to levels last seen before thernhousing downturn was born in 2006. rnRealtyTrac said today that the 2 percent decrease in the various typesrnof foreclosure filings in June brought overall activity down to the lowest itrnhas been since July of that year.  Therncompany released its Midyear Foreclosure Market Report which contains data onrnboth June foreclosure filings and those that occurred during the first half ofrn2014.</p

June filings, including default notices,rnscheduled auctions, and bank repossessions or completed foreclosures, werernfiled on a total of 107,194 properties, down 2 percent from May and 16 percentrnfrom June 2013.  For the first half ofrnthe year there were 613,874 filings, a decrease of 19rnpercent from the last half of 2013 and 23 percent from the first six months ofrnthat year.  Filings at mid-year equate tornone filing for every 214 housing units in the U.S. </p

“Nationwide foreclosure activity inrnJune reached an important milestone, dropping to levels not seen since beforernthe housing price bubble burst in August 2006,” said Daren Blomquist, vicernpresident at RealtyTrac. “Over the next six to nine months nationwidernforeclosure numbers should start to flat line at consistently historicallyrnnormal levels.</p

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Ten states also were at the lowestrnlevel of foreclosure activity in June since the housing bubble burst in Augustrn2006.  These include Texas, Georgia,rnColorado, Tennessee, Arizona and Nevada. rnActivity was down during the first half of the year compared to thernfirst six months of 2013 in all but nine states.  Among those with the larger increases were NewrnJersey which was up 54 percent, Maryland (+18 percent), Iowa (+10 percent), andrnMassachusetts and Connecticut, each with 4 percent increases. </p

Overall foreclosure rates during thernfirst half of the year were highest in Florida with one filing for every 74rnhousing units, Maryland with one in 107, Illinois, one in 123; New Jersey, onernin 134; and Nevada, one in 138.</p

There were 47,243 first-timernforeclosure starts in June, down 4 percent from May and 18 percent from a yearrnearlier and the lowest number since November 2005.  Foreclosure starts for the first six monthsrnnumbered 315,895.  At the current pace foreclosurernstarts will probably exceed 630,000 by the end of the year compared to arnfinally tally of 747,728 for all of 2013. </p

Foreclosure starts in June increasedrnfrom the previous month in 15 states and were up from a year ago in 20 states.  States will large annual increase include Massachusettsrn(+105 percent), New Jersey (+70 percent), Nevada and Indiana (+65 percent), andrnOregon (+50 percent). </p

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There were 26,889 completedrnforeclosures in June and 174,691 during the first six months of the year.  June’s foreclosures were down 5 percent fromrnMay and 24 percent from June 2013 and represented an 84 month low.  Based on the midyear number RealtyTracrnestimates there will be 350,000 foreclosures this year, down from 462,970 inrnall of 2013. </p

Completed foreclosures in June werernhigher than in May in 16 states and higher than a year ago in 12.  Both Iowa and Maryland had 86 percent morernforeclosures in June than a year earlier, New York was up 49 percent and Oregonrn22 percent.  </p

Foreclosure auctions were scheduledrnfor the first time on 46,743 U.S. properties in June, 1 percent fewer than in Mayrnand down 13 percent from a year ago to the lowest level since July 2006 – arn95-month low.  Scheduled auctionsrnincreased from May in 12 states and from a year ago in 17 with the largestrnincreases of 68 percent and 62 percent respectively in Connecticut andrnPennsylvania.</p

“There continue to be concerningrntrends in some states and local markets that clearly indicate those markets arernnot completely out of the woods when it comes to the lingering foreclosurernproblem left over from the housing bust,” Blomquist said. “While it’s importantrnthat any remaining foreclosure infection is addressed promptly to keep it fromrnfestering, foreclosures are no longer a widespread contagion threatening tornderail the housing market’s return to full health.”</p

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Despite dwindling numbers ofrnforeclosure filings the timeline to complete a foreclosure continues tornlengthen.  The average time to complete arnforeclosure in the second quarter of 2014 was 577 days, up from 572 days in thernfirst quarter and 526 days in the second quarter of 2013 while in New Jersey itrncurrently takes nearly twice as long, an average of 1,098 days.  The process is also extremely lengthy in NewrnYork (930 days), Hawaii (915 days), Illinois (850 days) and Massachusetts (784rndays.

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