Foreclosure activity in February fell to its lowest level in nine years even though lenders repossessed more assets, according to data from RealtyTrac.
Foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 101,938 properties in February. This is down from both a month earlier and a year ago by 4% and 9%, respectively.
Despite the national decrease in foreclosures, 24 states posted a year over year uptick in overall foreclosure activity, including Massachusetts (up 53%), New York (19%), and Nevada (12%).
Lenders took back more properties in February than the previous month. The Irvine, Calif.-based analytic firm revealed 24,305 assets became bank-owned in February, which is up 9% from January. However, this figure is down 20% from a year ago.
More than 48,000 properties began the foreclosure process in February, down 5% from January and a 7% decrease from the same month last year. There were 23 states that had more foreclosure starts in February than last year,
Additionally, 45,880 properties were scheduled for foreclosure auction in February. This is a 13% decrease month over month and is now at the lowest level since July 2006.
"Given that August 2006 was the peak of the housing bubble, this eight-and-a-half year low in foreclosure activity is a significant milestone and a sign that nationwide foreclosure activity is on track to return to historic norms this year—and is possible even headed below historic norms given the skinny-jeans-tight lending standards over the past five years," said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac.
