U.S. Foreclosure Activity Shows Continued Rise in Third Quarter
Industry Update
October 12, 2023
Source: ATTOM Data
ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property, and real estate data, released its Q3 2023 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows there were a total of 124,539 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions — up 28 percent from the previous quarter and 34 percent from a year ago.
The report also shows there were a total of 37,679 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in September 2023, up 11 percent from the previous month and up 18 percent from September 2022.
Foreclosure starts tick upwards from last year
Lenders started the foreclosure process on 68,961 U.S. properties in Q3 2023, down 1 percent from the previous quarter but up 3 percent from a year ago — nearly reaching pre-pandemic levels.
States that had 1,000 or more foreclosure starts in Q3 2023 and saw the greatest annual increases were North Carolina (up 53 percent); Louisiana (up 47 percent); Pennsylvania (up 24 percent); Alabama (up 18 percent); and Nevada (up 16 percent).
“Foreclosures are on the rise again this quarter, as indicated by our latest foreclosure numbers,” said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM. ” The number of new cases filed by lenders in the third quarter did rise just a small amount from the same period last year and actually dipped a bit quarterly – signs that the upward pattern may be easing. But foreclosure starts are nearly back to where they were two years ago when the federal government lifted a pandemic-related moratorium on most foreclosure filings. This rise in foreclosures might also be attributed to pending filings finally processing. Even with the national economic upturn and job stability, it’s evident that some homeowners are still grappling with the pandemic’s financial aftermath or encountering new challenges.”
Among the 223 metropolitan statistical areas analyzed in the report those that posted the greatest number of foreclosure starts in Q3 2023, included New York, New York (4,514 foreclosure starts); Chicago, Illinois (2,584 foreclosure starts); Houston, Texas (2,279 foreclosure starts); Los Angeles, California (2,273 foreclosure starts); and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2,104 foreclosure starts).
Counter to the national trend of annual increases, among those metropolitan areas with a population greater than one million that saw a decline in foreclosure starts in Q3 2023 were Salt Lake City, Utah (down 74 percent); Chicago, Illinois (down 35 percent); Kansas City, Missouri (down 34 percent); Columbus, Ohio (down 22 percent); and Milwaukee, Wisconsin (down 21 percent).
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