RealtyTrac: New Foreclosures Fall

RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace based in Irvine, Calif., has reported that the number of new properties in some stage of foreclosure fell nearly 9% in December, though it was up 35% from that of a year earlier.The company's Monthly U.S. Foreclosure Market Report indicates that 109,652 new foreclosure properties were added to the rolls in December. "New foreclosure filings surpassed the 100,000 level for the fifth straight month, something we've not seen since we began issuing our foreclosure market report in January 2005," said Jim Saccacio, RealtyTrac's chief executive officer. "While the number of new foreclosure filings dropped back from the high point of 2006 in November, the combination of slower home sales and rising interest rates on adjustable mortgages continues to drive foreclosures at significantly higher numbers than a year ago." The company said Colorado recorded the highest foreclosure rate of any state in December -- one new filing for every 376 households. RealtyTrac can be found online at http://www.realtytrac.com.