RealtyTrac: New Foreclosures Rise

RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace based in Irvine, Calif., has reported that the number of new properties in some stage of foreclosure rose 13% in February.The company's Monthly U.S. Foreclosure Market Report indicates that 117,259 new foreclosure properties were added to the rolls in February. "This is the third straight month the U.S. foreclosure rate has moved higher, and it's the second straight month new foreclosures have topped 100,000," said James J. Saccacio, RealtyTrac's chief executive officer. "However, several states, including California, Florida, Texas, and New York, reported a dip in foreclosures in February." The company said Georgia recorded the highest foreclosure rate of any state in February, jumping 28% (to 9,421 new foreclosures) from January's level and more than 100% from the level recorded a year earlier. RealtyTrac can be found online at http://www.realtytrac.com.