Report: November’s Foreclosure Rate Highest of the Year

A new report shows that 120,334 properties nationwide entered some stage of foreclosure during the month of November, an increase of 4 percent from the previous month and an increase of 68 percent from November 2005. The report, released today by online property marketplace RealtyTrac, also shows a national foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 961 U.S. households, the highest monthly foreclosure rate reported so far this year. “Defaults, auctions and bank repossessions all trended higher in November, bringing the year-to-date foreclosure total to almost 1.2 million — up 43 percent from the same 11-month period of 2005,” said James J. Saccacio, CEO of RealtyTrac. “With home price appreciation slowing, and even declining in some areas of the country, homebuyers who stretched themselves financially to purchase a property don’t have much equity to work with if they experience even a small bump in their mortgage rate or disruption in their income. However, the recent dip in interest rates, combined with relatively low unemployment in most areas of the country, should keep foreclosures from accelerating to the point where they impact the entire housing market.” Nevada beats out Colorado for highest foreclosure rate After eight consecutive months with Colorado posting the nation’s highest foreclosure rate, Nevada’s foreclosure rate jumped to the top spot thanks to a 12 percent increase in foreclosure activity from the previous month. Nevada reported 2,506 properties entering some stage of foreclosure during the month, nearly triple the number reported in November 2005 and a foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 346 households — 2.8 times the national average. Colorado foreclosure activity decreased nearly 10 percent from the previous month, helping the state’s foreclosure rate — one new foreclosure filing for every 362 households — drop to second highest among the states. The state reported 5,051 properties entering some stage of foreclosure, still up 88 percent from November 2005. With one new foreclosure filing for every 439 households, Georgia documented the nation’s third highest state foreclosure rate for the second month in a row. The state reported 7,056 properties entering some stage of foreclosure, a 2 percent increase from the previous month and a nearly 60 percent increase from November 2005. Other states with foreclosure rates among the nation’s 10 highest were Ohio, Texas, Michigan, California, New Jersey, Indiana and Tennessee. California reports highest number of foreclosures for third straight month More than 19,000 California properties entered some stage of foreclosure during November, the most of any state for the third straight month and an increase of more than 19 percent from the previous month. The state’s foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 635 households rose to 1.5 times the national average and jumped to seventh highest among the states after being 12th highest the previous month. California foreclosure activity has more than tripled from a year ago. Texas foreclosure activity jumped more than 40 percent in November after posting a decline in October. The increase pushed the state’s foreclosure total to 13,664, the second highest total of any state. The state’s foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 589 households was 1.6 times the national average and fifth highest in the nation. Despite an 18 percent month-to-month decrease in foreclosure activity, Florida reported the third highest foreclosure total in November. The state reported 9,362 properties entering some stage of foreclosure, up more than 5 percent from November 2005 and a foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 780 households — 12th highest among the states. Ohio, Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, Colorado and New York rounded out the 10 states with the most new foreclosure filings in November. Highest metro foreclosure rates in Colorado, Michigan and California For the fourth month in a row, Greeley, Colo., posted the highest foreclosure rate among the nation’s 200-plus largest metropolitan areas. The Greeley metro area (Weld County) documented 428 properties entering some stage of foreclosure, an increase of 13 percent from the previous month and a foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 155 households — more than six times the national average. Despite a 21 percent decrease in foreclosure activity, the Detroit metropolitan area (Wayne County) registered the nation’s second highest metro foreclosure rate for the second month in a row. The metro area reported 3,333 properties entering some stage of foreclosure, a foreclosure rate of one new foreclosure filing for every 248 households. With one new foreclosure filing for every 250 households, Riverside/San Bernardino, Calif., documented the nation’s third highest MSA foreclosure rate in November. The two-county metro area reported 4,747 properties entering some stage of foreclosure during the month, an increase of more than 57 percent from the previous month and 3.8 times the national average.