Tuesday, December 20, 2011 / by Nathan Clark
Foreclosures Fall again
U.S. Foreclosure filings in the month of November dropped 3 percent from October and were down 14 percent from November of 2010, according to a foreclosure tracking firm.
RealtyTrac reported that bank repossessions, the last step in the foreclosure process, were also down about 17 percent from October and were 45 percent off their peak high, which was in September of 2010.
However, RealtyTrac reported that scheduled bank auctions grew 13 percent from the previous month, perhaps an indicator that delays in the foreclosure pipeline are indeed clearing up and that maybe foreclosure activity could ramp up again in 2012.
Still, the number of initial default notices – the first step of foreclosure, when banks inform borrowers they have missed a payment -- dropped by 8 percent in November compared to October and were down 9 percent from the same month last year, according to RealtyTrac.
Combined, the data seem to suggest that mortgages currently in the foreclosure process are winding their way through, but that fewer mortgages are entering the process.
RealtyTrac reported that bank repossessions, the last step in the foreclosure process, were also down about 17 percent from October and were 45 percent off their peak high, which was in September of 2010.
However, RealtyTrac reported that scheduled bank auctions grew 13 percent from the previous month, perhaps an indicator that delays in the foreclosure pipeline are indeed clearing up and that maybe foreclosure activity could ramp up again in 2012.
Still, the number of initial default notices – the first step of foreclosure, when banks inform borrowers they have missed a payment -- dropped by 8 percent in November compared to October and were down 9 percent from the same month last year, according to RealtyTrac.
Combined, the data seem to suggest that mortgages currently in the foreclosure process are winding their way through, but that fewer mortgages are entering the process.