Foreclosures 'boil over' in judicial foreclosure states

Foreclosure-related filings were down sharply from a year ago nationwide in August despite an increase in foreclosure activity in 20 states, particularly in states where courts handle the foreclosure process, including New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Illinois and Pennsylvania.

According to the latest numbers from data aggregator RealtyTrac,  193,508 homes were hit with foreclosure-related filings last month, including  notices of default, auction notices and bank repossessions. That's an increase of 1 percent from July, but a 15 percent  decrease from a year ago.

Foreclosure starts were up 1 percent from July to August, with 99,405 homes entering the foreclosure pipeline, down 13 percent from a year ago. Bank repossessions were also down on a year-over-year basis for the 22nd month in a row, RealtyTrac said. Lenders  repossessed 52,380 homes in August, down 2 percent from July and 6 percent  from a year ago.

Source: RealtyTrac

Bucking  the national trend, foreclosure-related filings "boiled over" in  August in several states where courts handle the foreclosure process,  including Illinois and Florida, said Daren Blomquist, vice president of  RealtyTrac, in a statement.

An increase in short sales and foreclosures was predicted in judicial foreclosure states after the nation's five largest mortgage servicers reached a $25 billion settlement in March over "robo-signing" allegations. 

While foreclosure-related filings were down 31 percent collectively from a year ago in the 24 nonjudicial states and District of Columbia, some judicial foreclosure  states saw big annual increases in foreclosure activity, led by Kentucky (up 73 percent), New Jersey (up 65 percent), New York (up 56 percent), and Maryland (up 54 percent).

Foreclosure-related filings were up from a year ago in 20 states in August, including Illinois, which posted the highest rate of any state with 1 in every 298 housing units. A total of 17,781 Illinois properties were subjected to a foreclosure-related filing in August, -- a 42 percent increase from  a year ago.

Florida climbed to second on RealtyTrac's list of states with the highest rate of foreclosure-related filings, with 1 in 328 properties subjected to a filing.

Until August, the top two spots on the list have been held by one of four nonjudicial foreclosure states since December 2010: Arizona, California, Georgia and Nevada.

10 states with highest foreclosure rate

Rank	State	August 2012 Properties with Foreclosure Filings	1/every X Housing Units	Percent change from July 2012	Percent change from Aug. 2012
1	Illinois	17,781	298	29.09	42.33
2	Florida	27,422	328	7.39	16.35
3	California	40,200	340	-4.47	-32.30
4	Arizona	7,899	360	-3.87	-28.72
5	Nevada	2,921	402	3.33	-69.82
6	Georgia	9,478	431	-12.73	-19.29
7	Ohio	9,218	556	-5.15	-6.33
8	Michigan	7,648	593	-12.66	-41.24
9	Delaware	665	610	180.59	1.68
10	Colorado	3,584	617	24.66	-27.35

Source: RealtyTrac

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