“More than 1 million foreclosure homes are forecast for 2008”
“Florida had 35,264 homes reporting at least one foreclosure filing last month, a 146% jump from a year earlier and a 17% hike from March. That translates into a foreclosure rate of one in every 242 households, the fourth-highest in the nation.”
Contributing to the deepening slide in home values was a larger number of U.S. homeowners falling behind on mortgage payments last month, driving the number of foreclosure homes up 65% versus the same month last year, said a research company on Tuesday.
At least 243,353 homes received one foreclosure related filing nationwide in April, up 65% from 147,708 in the same month last year and up 4% since March, RealtyTrac Inc. said.
Among the hardest hit states were Nevada, Arizona, California and Florida with metropolitan areas in California and Florida accounting for nine of the top 10 areas with the highest rate of foreclosure, the company said.
In April one in every 519 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing increasing foreclosure filings in all but eight states.
A majority of homeowners have fewer options to avoid foreclosure due to the combination of weak housing sales, falling home values, tighter mortgage lending criteria and a slowing US economy. Many can't find buyers and owe more than their home is worth and can't get refinanced into an affordable loan.
The number of troubled homeowners is rising because efforts by government and the mortgage industry to stem the tide of foreclosures aren't keeping up with
April data shows nearly half of the properties received an initial notice of default, suggesting many homes were new entrants to the foreclosure process.
The U.S. House passed a bill last week that would offer government insurance on $300 billion in new mortgages to refinance loans for an estimated half-million borrowers facing foreclosure, particularly those who now owe more than their houses are worth because of declining values.
House lawmakers also passed a bill that would send $15 billion to states to buy and fix foreclosed homes.
Should the homeowner aid package clear the Senate? It faces a possible hurdle in the White House, which has threatened to veto the plan, arguing it's too risky and amounts to a lender bailout.
It could come too late for homeowners with adjustable-rate mortgages scheduled to reset to higher rates this month and the next, even if a legislative compromise is reached.
More than 54,500 properties were repossessed by lenders nationwide in April. In all, about 2% of U.S. households were in some stage of foreclosure during the month, reported RealtyTrac.
Home prices are being dragged down as foreclosed properties are piling up and adding to the inventory of homes on the market. Southern California, the Las Vegas area, South Florida and parts of Arizona are feeling the most impact because these are the regions where foreclosures are more concentrated.
With one in every 146 households receiving a foreclosure-related notice last month was Nevada with the worst foreclosure rate in the nation, nearly four times the national rate.
The number of properties with a filing jumped 95% versus April last year but declined 5% from March.
At 64,683, California had the most properties facing foreclosure, an increase of 112% from April 2007. The number of properties declined less than 1% from March. The state posted the second-highest foreclosure rate in the country, with one in every 204 households receiving a foreclosure-related notice.
California metro areas accounted for six of the 10 U.S. metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rates.
With one in every 224 households reporting a foreclosure filing in April, Arizona had the third-highest foreclosure rate. A total of 11,620 homes reported at least one filing, up nearly 181% from a year earlier and up 26% from the previous month.
Areas of Arizona, like Las Vegas and inland regions in California, saw a sharp run-up in speculator-driven home prices and new home construction during the housing boom.
The other states among the 10 with the highest foreclosure rates in April were Colorado, Maryland, Georgia, Ohio, Michigan and Massachusetts.
Contributed by MLR Realty
Home