U.S. Completed Foreclosures Down 27% from Year Ago

Nationally, foreclosure inventory is down 29% and shadow inventory down 7% according to CoreLogic. Seriously delinquent mortgages are at the lowest level since December 2008.

Palm Coast, FL – July 9, 2013 – CoreLogic released its National Foreclosure Report today, providing data and analysis on completed U.S. foreclosures and foreclosure inventory. It shows 52,000 completed foreclosures in May 2013, a 27% decline year-over-year from 71,000 in May 2012. Shadow inventory fell below $2 million homes for the first time since 2008. May saw 48 Flagler County foreclosure sales (homes, condos and land) completed vs. 40 during May 2012.

Since the financial crisis began in September 2008, approximately 4.4 million foreclosures have been completed. Flagler County accounted for more than 3,100 of that total. “We continue to see a sharp drop in foreclosures around the country and with it a decrease in the size of the shadow inventory. Affordability, despite the rise in home prices over the past year, and consumer confidence are big contributors to these positive trends. We are particularly encouraged by the broad-based nature of the housing market recovery so far in 2013.”

Approximately 1.0 million homes in the U.S. were in some stage of foreclosure as of May 2013 compared to 1.4 million in May 2012, a decrease of 29 percent. This was the 19th consecutive month with a year-over-year decline. As of May 2013, the foreclosure inventory represented 2.6 percent of all homes with a mortgage compared to 3.5 percent in May 2012. The foreclosure inventory declined 3.3 percent from April 2013 to May 2013.

Fewer than 2.3 million mortgages, or 5.6%, are seriously delinquent. “The stock of seriously delinquent homes, which is the main driver of shadow inventory, is at the lowest level since December 2008. Over the last year, it has decreased in 42 states by double-digit figures, resulting in rapid declines in shadow inventory for the first quarter of 2013,” says Dr. Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic.

The five states with the highest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of mortgaged homes are:

• Florida:  8.8% (foreclosure % point change from a year ago -2.9%)
• New Jersey:  6.0%
• New York:  4.8%
• Maine:  4.1%
• Connecticut:  4.1%

The five states with the lowest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of mortgaged homes are:

• Wyoming:  0.5%
• Alaska:  0.6%
• North Dakota:  0.6%
• Nebraska:  0.8%
• Virginia:  0.8%

The five states with the highest number of completed foreclosures during the past 12 months:

• Florida:  103,000
• California:  76,000
• Michigan:  64,000
• Texas:  51,000
• Georgia:  47,000

The five states with the fewest completed foreclosures during the past 12 months:

• D.C.:  108
• Hawaii:  453
• North Dakota:  476
•  West Virginia:  517
• Maine:  644

Florida, at 13.3%, has the highest percentage rate of seriously delinquent loans.

Shadow inventory, also called pending supply, decreased 18 percent from 2.4 million units in April 2012 to slightly below 2 million in April 2013. Current residential shadow inventory represents a supply of 5.3 months compared to the previous year’s supply of 5.8 months. Shadow inventory is down 34 percent from its peak in January 2010 when it reached 3 million homes.

Shadow inventory includes properties that are more than 90 days delinquent, in foreclosure and held as real estate owned (REO) by mortgage servicers, but not currently on multiple listing services. Transition rates of “delinquency to foreclosure” and “foreclosure to REO” are used to identify unlisted distressed properties most likely to become REO. Properties not yet delinquent but that may become delinquent in the future, are not included in the pending supply estimate. Shadow inventory is not typically included in the official reporting measurements of unsold inventory.