California Foreclosure Activity Rising

Foreclosure activity began to rise in California at the end of the third quarter, according to ForeclosureS.com, Fair Oaks, Calif.Alexis McGee, president of ForeclosureS.com, said many factors are conspiring to put homeowners at risk of possible foreclosure, such as rising interest rates, a flattening price appreciation curve, and growing use of high-risk loans to qualify for more expensive homes. "We saw increases in defaults month to month at the end of the third quarter in eight of the 13 Northern California counties that we cover, and in four of five Southern California counties," she said. ForeclosureS.com expanded its foreclosure list to nationwide coverage in November, and now has over 700,000 listings of distressed property in more than 900 counties across the country, Ms. McGee said. The company can be found online at http://www.foreclosures.com.