Foreclosures Hit 5-year Low

Foreclosure activity hit a 5-year low in September 2012 according to RealtyTrac, a national resource on distressed properties, with only 180,427 filings for the month. Overall, the numbers were down 7% from August and 16% from September 2011. Last quarter was the ninth consecutive quarter of declines.

Especially jarring numbers include a 45% drop in the State of California, a nonjudicial foreclosure state. Other nonjudicial states include Georgia, Texas, Arizona and Michigan.

In Wisconsin, a judicial foreclosure state, 1 of every 745 housing units received a foreclosure filing during September. There are a total of over 35,000 foreclosure homes in the state. Some explanations for a higher foreclosure rate are found in judicial states as many homes that were previously tied up in the court system are being released now. Because of the large drops in nonjudicial states, the foreclosure rate has continued to decrease each quarter. Continued release of backlogged foreclosures makes the future of foreclosure rates hard to determine.

Tags: distressed properties, Foreclosure, foreclosure rates, foreclosures, Real Estate, real estate trends, shorewest, Shorewest Realtors