Foreclosures Increase, But More Slowly

Filings In August Up 27% Compared To '07; More Than 90,000 Properties Repossessed Last Month

(AP)  Foreclosure filings in August increased 27 percent compared to the same month a year ago, a significantly slower pace than in previous months, according to data released Thursday.

Nationwide, 303,800 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice in August, up 12 percent from July, RealtyTrac Inc. said. That means one in every 416 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing last month.

August's increase, however, was smaller than the two prior months. June and July both had year-over year increases in foreclosure filings of 50 percent or more. Still, the total number of foreclosure filings is the highest since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in January 2005.

Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac monitors default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions. More than 90,893 properties were repossessed by lenders nationwide last month - up more than half from 43,141 in August 2007, the company said.

The top three states in foreclosure rates were Nevada, California and Arizona, in that order, RealtyTrac said. Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Ohio, Colorado, Illinois and Indiana rounded out the top 10, though Michigan, Georgia, Ohio and Colorado all reported rate decreases year-over-year.

Weak sales, sinking home values, tighter home loan lending practices and a slowing U.S. economy hamstrung by high fuel prices has left some homeowners with few options to avoid foreclosure. Many can't find buyers or owe more than their home is worth and can't refinance into an affordable loan.

Banks and mortgage investors are also holding a glut of foreclosed properties and are slashing prices to get them off the books.

On Thursday, four Democratic senators urged the mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to freeze foreclosures for 90 days on loans they hold. The troubled companies, seized by the government Sunday, should help struggling borrowers swap their mortgages for more affordable loans and stay in their homes, the lawmakers said.

An estimated 2.8 million U.S. households will face foreclosure, turn over their homes to their lender or sell the properties for less than their mortgage's value by the end of next year, predicts Moody's Economy.com.

James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac, said the lower percentage increase last month is due to a big spike in activity in August 2007. Last month, default activity was up 10 percent from a year ago and auction activity up 7 percent year-over-year, Saccacio said.

"The increases in default and auction activity could be slowing down partly as the result of new legislation passed in several states that is designed to give homeowners in distress more time before foreclosure proceedings are initiated," Saccacio said.

The next six months will be critical in terms of the housing crisis, noted Albert Saiz, assistant real estate professor at Wharton School of Business. Consumers and investors will be tracking volatile financial markets, judging the success or failure of this year's housing bill, monitoring the government bailout of Freddie and Fannie, and anticipating the impact of a new president, he said.

On the bright side, if home prices and sales stabilize or improve, the foreclosure situation could get better.

But the slow economy, high unemployment and volatile financial markets present obstacles to improvement in the foreclosure situation, Saiz said.

Together, California, Florida and Arizona accounted for more than half of the nation's volume of foreclosure activity.

Last month, California's foreclosure activity increased more than 40 percent from July and more than 75 percent from August 2007.

The California cities of Stockton, Merced and Modesto were 1-2-3 in top metro foreclosure rates. July's leader, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla., metro area, dropped to sixth. Las Vegas came in seventh.

[kaylag04]

The "financiers" and the so-called elite are broke and wish to take mankind down with them.

The end of "fiat-currency" is nay.

Mark My Words.
Posted by whitemale08 at 03:38 PM : Sep 14, 2008

I marked your words, and the word is "nigh", as in, "the end is nigh". Unless of course the end is "nay", then I don''t need to worry, anyway.

[whitemale08]

PREPARE TO BE PLUNGED INTO A NEW DARK AGE!!!!

Earth will lose 3/4 of its population by war, famine, pestilence and death.

The "financiers" and the so-called elite are broke and wish to take mankind down with them.

The end of "fiat-currency" is nay.

Mark My Words.

[jerkytree]

Who created this mess for the hard working Americans? Who is responsible for our failing school system? Who is responsible for our national debt? Who is responsible for the 4100 young Americans who died for oil? Who is responsible for the 20-40 thausand injured Americans and their families? who is responsible for the desasterous health care system? Who is responsible for the 6.1% unemployment rate and all those no longer copunted? And on goes the list. Why is it that Americans keep shopping all the stuff they do not need? One day soon there will not be any credit, jobs and welfare. It sis coming fast folks. You have seen nothing yet. Thank Mr. Bush and Cheney Senators and Congress people. You really managed to .... us all.

[wardoglrs]

Dear voters please stop voting for Dem & Repubs. This two party system just doent work. Lets put some 3rd party people in and let the party begin.

[wardoglrs]

The average American in the year 2005 lives a fragile existence, in a struggle for survival that can be end-ed by missing a few paychecks. The carrot at the end of the stick which was formerly known as "the American dream" has been replaced by a whip that can best be described as the American nightmare of homelessness, and slow, early death. You no longer work to achieve a better life for yourselves and your children. You work to keep a roof over your head, and you pray that you don%u2019t lose it.

[kaylag04]

How about a government reward for the 96% of the mortgage paying citizens who do the right thing and pay on time, or the 35% of homeowners that have paid off their homes, and own them outright. I know its a heretical thought on the CBS comment boards to suggest that the many folks who live up to their obligations in life be recognized; but there ya go.

[ubrew12]

jamesm12341 said: "self responsibility is hard for you libs to get isnt it "

I would estimate that $7 trillion of our $10 trillion national debt can be attributed to the Republican Parties overestimation of its sense of ''self-responsibility''. As long as that is the way the ''tab'' goes, I will PROUDLY tout my self-irresponsibility in this Republican-raped nation. You can tout your Republican credentials all you want: eventually (as in 1780), the ''masses'' will figure out who sc*wed them and will come looking for you.

Hope you have a strong neck.

[ubrew12]

jamesm12341 said: "Bush is president and I can pay my mortgage "

You can thank ''socialism for mortgage companies and mortgage owners''. We''re living through a trillion dollar bailout to you and people like you through our banks and mortgage companies. You''re a welfare queen.

The OTHER kind of socialism, that pays the poor something to help with BEING poor, that has no place in Bush''s America, or in yours.

[iphyt4u]

The republicans know that the age of greed is over with. Republicans are ignorant, self rightous, and just plain stupid, get the hell out of the way before you destroy everything. Hey, after 4,100 good young people killed, and $800 billion tax dollars, Ijust want to know...where''s bin laden...and where are all those weapons of mass destruction.

[txgrouch2006]

In 1999, Gramm pushed through a historic banking deregulation bill
Posted by whatithink1 at 07:55 AM : Sep 12, 2008

WHO was President in 1999? Why didn''t he VETO IT???

[txgrouch2006]

Some people just don''''t get it.
Posted by Upto007 at 09:38 AM : Sep 12, 2008

YOU don''t "get it."

But then, that''s a common condition by those who CHOOSE TO REMAIN IGNORANT AND UNINFORMED...

Uninformed BY CHOICE. That''s the liberals.

[txgrouch2006]

Sorry to tell you this, but that would be Phil Gramm (McCain''''s economic advisor who deregulated the home mortgage business) in 1999.
Posted by whatithink1 at 07:55 AM : Sep 12, 2008

Apparently you can''t read. I wrote:

And yes, Phil Gramm was right in there to make this a truly bipartisan act of STEALING FROM THE ORDINARY CITIZENS to bail out the fat cats who got NO-RISK HIGH RETURN investments in subprime home loans.
Posted by txgrouch2006 at 07:05 AM : Sep 12, 2008

[lemonskink]

Foreclosures increase, but more slowly? What the hell. That''s like saying, a person is dying, but more slowly. Four more years of McBush and Caribou Barbie ought to do us in.

[gop_will_win]

Posted by whatithink1 , Phil Gramm is McCains economic advisor. Isnt he a genius?

[upto007]

Bush and the big banks are hiding all the Foreclosures so the people want know how bad it is. I see we have a fool on here that wants to blame Bill Clinton. Some people just don''t get it.

[whatithink1]

Warren Buffett''s happy housing story

Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary Clayton homes makes loans to low-income households - and foreclosures have actually dropped.

September 11, 2008


What''s behind the portfolio''s strength? Clayton is more careful about lending because it keeps all loans on its own books rather than offloading them to others by means of securitization.

[whatithink1]

kecc1,

This is not the main reason. Banks were not required to make $800K loans to strawberry pickers who make $17K a year. This happened! Nobody forced them to do this. However, banks no longer had to keep the loans on their books, so they didn''t care. The main problem was that banks didn''t have to keep loans on their books. Before this they would have been more prudent in giving loans. They sold off the loans, so they were only focused in making short-term gains so they could get big bonuses.

Warren Buffett has been lending to lower income people and he doesn''t have a problem. Explain this!

[gop_will_win]

Pay your mortgages instead of buying crack you stupid liberals!

[kecc1]

A cause for the crisis that I hear people talk about, but never see the media address is that banks were required to lower their lending criteria so that more people with low income could buy homes. Black leaders felt their people were being discriminated against. Politicians caved in and now everyone has to deal with this mess. Limiting housing costs to 30% of take home pay is a good guideline. Ignoring such reasonable limits is nuts. People bought houses they couldn''t afford. Schools should teach budgeting as part of basic math in high school.

[chimpyout]

Here''s great news and a rejoinder to troublesome nay-sayers, Chimp haters and unhelpful people who have no resolve. Of course things are getting worse; but look at the positive side--they''re deteriorating at a SLOWER rate!