RealtyTrac: Foreclosures Fall 10%

Nearly 202,000 foreclosure filings were reported nationwide in November, down 10% from the level recorded in October but up 68% from that of a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace based in Irvine, Calif.The nation's foreclosure rate stood at one foreclosure filing for every 617 households, the company said in its November 2007 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. (Foreclosure filings include default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions.) "The 10% drop in November is the first double-digit monthly decrease we've seen since April 2006," said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. "This could indicate that foreclosure activity has topped out for the year, but the test of whether this ceiling will hold will come at the beginning of next year -- when we anticipate that a seasonal surge in foreclosure filings and another possible wave of resetting mortgages could place further pressure on the housing market." RealtyTrac said Nevada, Florida, and Ohio recorded the highest foreclosure rates in November. The company can be found online at http://www.realtytrac.com.