Foreclosures continued to flood the housing market in November in Pima County and across the state, RealtyTrac reported today.
While the number of foreclosures in November dropped compared with October, they were still up dramatically from a year ago, and RealtyTrac analysts said they expected more bank-owned properties in the new year.
"We're going to have a pretty significant spike in January," said Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's vice president for marketing. Plus, as job losses mount, "increases in foreclosure activity follow that pretty directly," he added.
There were 1,183 homes in some form of foreclosure last month in Pima County. That number is down compared with October, when 1,376 homes were in some form of foreclosure. But it is up by 115 percent compared with November of last year, when 549 homes were in the foreclosure process.
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In Tucson, 992 homes were in the foreclosure process last month. In October, 1,160 homes were facing foreclosure, and in November 2007, 487 homes faced foreclosure.
Pima County had the fourth-highest foreclosure rate among Arizona counties, with one foreclosure for every 354 homes.
The statewide foreclosure rate was one for every 198 homes; nationally, the rate was one for every 488 homes.
Pinal County, which had 1,168 homes in the foreclosure process, ranked first in foreclosure rate; there was a foreclosure for every 109 homes.
Maricopa County had 9,936 homes in the foreclosure process last month. That number also was down compared with October, when Maricopa County had 13,511 homes facing or in foreclosure, but it was markedly up when compared with November of last year, when 4,375 homes were in the foreclosure process.
There was one foreclosure for every 151 homes in Maricopa County, which had the second-highest foreclosure rate in the state, the report says.
In Phoenix, 3,684 homes were in the foreclosure process last month. In October, 4,923 homes were facing foreclosure, and in November 2007 there were 1,545 homes facing foreclosure.
Nationally, the number of foreclosures fell last month to the lowest level since June as new state laws lengthened the foreclosure process, RealtyTrac reported.
Nationwide, more than 259,000 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice in November, down 7 percent from October but 28 percent higher than a year ago, RealtyTrac said.
The report comes as Democrats, including President-elect Barack Obama, insist that the government must use some of the bailout funds to halt rising foreclosures.
Last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that a record one in 10 American homeowners with a mortgage was either at least one month behind on his payments or in foreclosure at the end of September.
RealtyTrac monitors default notices, auction-sale notices and bank repossessions. More than 78,000 properties were repossessed by lenders last month, the Irvine, Calif.-based company said.
The worst recession in decades, along with falling home values and stricter lending standards, has ensnared millions of U.S. households. The Federal Reserve predicts that new foreclosures this year will reach about 2.25 million, more than double pre-crisis levels.
In RealtyTrac's report, Nevada, Florida and Arizona had the nation's top foreclosure rates. In Nevada, one in every 76 homes received a foreclosure filing last month. Florida saw one in every 173 properties receive a foreclosure filing, and in Arizona it was one in every 198 homes. Rounding out the top 10 were California, Michigan, Georgia, Ohio, Colorado, Utah and Idaho.
Among metro areas, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area in Florida was first, with one in every 59 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. It was followed by Las Vegas, and then the California cities of Merced, Modesto and Stockton.
By the numbers
November foreclosures
Pima County 1,183
Tucson 992
Maricopa County 9,936
Phoenix 3,684
Source: RealtyTrac