RealtyTrac, a leading supplier of U.S. real estate data, has recently released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for February 2015.
Foreclosures were reported on 101,938 U.S. properties in February which is a 4 percent decrease from the revised January numbers, a 9 percent drop compared to last year and it has also reached the lowest level since July 2006, RealtyTrac notes.
From the RealtyTrac's U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, it stated that the U.S. foreclosure rate in February 2015 is 1 per 1, 295 housing units that has foreclosure filings in the said month. Foreclosure filings in this report refer to all default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions.
"Given that August 2006 was the peak of the housing bubble, this eight-and-a-half year low in foreclosure activity is a significant milestone and a sign that nationwide foreclosure activity is on track to return to historic norms this year - and is possibly even headed below historic norms given the skinny-jeans-tight lending standards over the past five years," said Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac vice president
Blomquist also added, "In markets where foreclosures were processed more efficiently we are seeing foreclosure numbers now below pre-crisis levels in some cases. Conversely, the cleanup of deferred distress is continuing in markets where a logjam of in-limbo foreclosures is still lingering from the housing crisis - as evidenced by rebounding foreclosure activity in those markets."
The U.S. Foreclosure Market Report presented more important findings:
1. The 3 States with Highest Foreclosure Rates are Maryland, Nevada and Florida.
Maryland has a foreclosure rate of 1 for every 564 housing units with foreclosure filing, but this rate was actually 1 percent down from February 2014.
Nevada has 1 for every 569 housing units with foreclosure filing, and this rate is 12 percent higher than the one posted February, last year.
Florida has 1 for every 570 housing units with foreclosure filing, but this was a massive 35 percent decrease already from last year's foreclosure rate.
2. There was a national decrease in foreclosure starts, except for 22 states.
The national data on foreclosure starts revealed 48,079 properties in February 2015, down 5 percent from January 2015 and a 7 percent decrease from last year, February 2014. The states which posted higher rates include the following ---Nevada (153%), Massachussetts (116%) and Texas (5%).
3. There was a national decrease in scheduled foreclosure auctions, except for 25 states
The national data on scheduled for foreclosure auctions were a total of 45,880 properties in February 2015, which was a 13 decline from January 2015, and down 4 percent from February 2014. States which posted higher rates were New York (146%), Massachusetts (88%) and New Jersey (38%).
