Filings down but completed foreclosures up across the US
The latest foreclosure numbers for April 2024 revealed a mixed picture of the US housing market, according to a new report from ATTOM.
While overall foreclosure filings declined nationwide both monthly and annually, completed foreclosures ticked up compared to March, highlighting conflicting dynamics.
One in every 4,453 U.S. housing units had a foreclosure filing in April, whether a default notice, scheduled auction or bank repossession. A total of 31,649 properties faced such filings, down 4% from March and April 2023.
"April's foreclosure numbers highlight a mixed landscape in the US housing market," ATTOM chief executive officer Rob Barber said in the report. "While there is a general downtrend in foreclosure starts and filings, we have also seen an increase in completed foreclosures.”
The states with the highest foreclosure rates were Maryland (one in 2,214 housing units), Illinois (one in 2,517), Nevada (one in 2,546), South Carolina (one in 2,573) and Florida (one in 2,854).
Lenders started the foreclosure process on 21,753 properties in April, a 7% monthly decrease and a 3% annual decline. States with over 100 foreclosure starts saw varying monthly changes, with Maryland (up 85%), Oregon (up 80%) and Oklahoma (up 65%) posting the largest increases against the overall trend.
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On the completed foreclosure side, lenders repossessed 2,904 US properties in April, up 8% from March but essentially flat year over year. Illinois, Pennsylvania, California, New York and Maryland saw the highest REO totals among states.
The New York, Chicago, Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia metro areas reported the greatest number of REOs for cities with over 200,000 population.
"This mixed activity underscores the importance of closely monitoring these developments to understand the ongoing dynamics in the real estate market," Barber said.
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