3rd Quarter Foreclosure Activity at Lowest Level Since 2005
ATTOM Data Solutions, Irvine, Calif., reported 143,105 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in the third quarter, down 6 percent from the previous quarter and down 19 percent from a year ago to the lowest level since Q2 2005.
The company’s Q3 2019 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report said U.S. foreclosure activity in the third quarter was 49 percent below the pre-recession average of 278,912 properties with foreclosure filings per quarter between Q1 2006 and Q3 2007, marking the 12th consecutive quarter where U.S. foreclosure activity has registered below the pre-recession average.
“Foreclosure activity continues to decline across the country, which is a good sign that the housing market and the broader economy remain strong–and that the lending excesses that helped bring down the economy during the Great Recession remain a memory,” said Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM Data Solutions. “This is not to say that everything in the latest foreclosure picture is rosy. Some states have seen their foreclosure rates increase this year, which could cause some concern. But overall, the foreclosure numbers reflect a market in which buyers can afford their homes and lenders remain careful in loaning to home buyers who have little chance of repaying.”
Key report findings:
–Lenders started the foreclosure process on 78,394 U.S. properties in the third quarter, down 8 percent from the previous quarter and down 15 percent from a year ago, marking the 17th consecutive quarter with a year-over-year decrease in foreclosure starts.
–Nationwide one in every 946 properties had a foreclosure filing in the third quarter. States with the highest foreclosure rates in were Delaware (one in every 415 housing units); New Jersey (one in every 436); Maryland (one in every 500); Illinois (one in every 517); and Florida (one in every 577). Among 220 metropolitan statistical areas the highest foreclosure rates in the third quarter included Atlantic City, N.J. (one in every 269 housing units); Trenton, N.J. (one in every 312); Rockford, Ill. (one in every 366); and Fayetteville, N.C. (one in every 369).
–Lenders repossessed 34,432 U.S. properties through foreclosure in the third quarter, up 6 percent from the previous quarter but down 33 percent from a year ago.
–Properties foreclosed in the third quarter had been in the foreclosure process an average of 841 days, up from 716 days in the previous quarter and up from 713 days in a year ago to the highest level since Q4 2017.
States with the longest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q3 2018 were Indiana (1,633 days); Hawaii (1,626 days); Nevada (1,511 days); New Jersey (1,173 days); and Georgia (1,170 days).
–Nationwide in September one in every 2,767 properties had a foreclosure filing.
–States with the highest foreclosure rates in September were Delaware (one in every 1,170 housing units); Maryland (one in every 1,270); Illinois (one in every 1,409); New Jersey (one in every 1,534); and Connecticut (one in every 1,997).
–24,453 U.S. properties started the foreclosure process in September, down 12 percent from the previous month and down 15 percent from a year ago. September marked the 8th consecutive month with a year-over-year decrease in foreclosure starts.
–Lenders completed the foreclosure process on 11,869 U.S. properties in September 2019, up 3 percent from the previous month and up 10 percent from a year ago.
