Foreclosures saw significant decreases in Q1 in 60% of larger markets
The number of US properties with a foreclosure filing fell to 161,875 in the first quarter of 2019.
That’s a 23% decrease from the previous quarter and a 15% decrease year-over-year according to ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q1 2019 US Foreclosure Market Report.
For March, foreclosure filings were up 7% month-over-month but down 21% year-over-year to 58,550.
"While some markets saw a slight uptick in foreclosure filings, that is above pre-recession levels, the majority of the major markets are well below pre-recession levels," said Todd Teta, chief product officer at ATTOM Data Solutions. "While we did see a slight increase in US foreclosure starts from last quarter, bank repossessions reached an all-time low in the first quarter of 2019, showing continuing signs of a strong housing market."
In 60% of markets with populations above 200K foreclosure activity was below pre-recession averages. These markets include San Jose (79 percent below); Memphis (77% below); Dallas-Fort Worth (77% below); Las Vegas (74% below); and Phoenix (68% below).
However, in 40% of markets of 200K+ populations, foreclosure activity levels were still above pre-recession averages, including Baltimore (189% above); Washington D.C. (26% above); Philadelphia (20% above); New York (13% above); and Hartford (4% above).
Other stats
- Nationwide in March 2019 one in every 2,312 properties had a foreclosure filing
- States with the highest foreclosure rates in March 2019 were Delaware (one in every 999 housing units with a foreclosure filing); New Jersey (one in every 1,021 housing units); Maryland (one in every 1,077 housing units); Florida (one in every 1,345 housing units); and South Carolina (one in every 1,379 housing units).
- 32,280 U.S. properties started the foreclosure process in March 2019, up 9% from the previous month but down 2% from a year ago. March 2019 marked the third consecutive month with a month-over-month increase in foreclosure starts.
- Lenders completed the foreclosure process on 12,167 U.S. properties in March 2019, up 7% from the previous month but down 53% from a year ago.
