Foreclosures increase in 65% of MSAs in 3Q: RealtyTrac

by JON PRIOR

Foreclosure filings increased from last year in 133 of 206 metropolitan statistical areas tracked in the third quarter, or 65%, according to RealtyTrac.

The Seattle area had the highest increase. There, foreclosure filings, which include notices of default, pending cases, notices of foreclosure sale and repossessions, increased 71% from the third quarter of 2009. Chicago was second with a 35% increase followed by Houston, Texas at 26%.

California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona accounted for 19 of the top-20 foreclosure rates in the country. The only exception was Boise City, Idaho, which was 14th.

Las Vegas posted the highest rate in the third quarter, where one in every 25 housing units received a filing, more than five times the national average. The 32,288 filings is down 20% from last year.

Cape Coral-Fort Meyers, Fla. was second with a one in 35 foreclosure rate. Filings there reached 10,352, down 22%. One in 36 houses in Modesto, Calif. received a filing in the third quarter for the third highest rate, but it was an 18% drop from a year ago.

Miami, Fla. posted the highest total number of foreclosures in the third quarter, at more than 58,600 filings. It's an increase of 9% from last year and up 25% from the previous quarter.

“The underlying problems that are causing homeowners to miss their mortgage payments — high unemployment, underemployment, toxic loans and negative equity — are continuing to plague most local housing markets,” said James Saccacio, CEO of RealtyTrac. “And these historically high foreclosure rates will continue until those problems are resolved.”

URL to original article: http://www.housingwire.com/2010/10/28/foreclosures-increase-in-65-of-msas-in-3q-realtytrac