Foreclosures Fall Nationally

According to ATTOM Data Solutions, foreclosure filings on 933,045 fall 14% for U.S. properties for 2016 from 2015. This is the lowest level since 2006, when there were foreclosure filings on 717,522 U.S. properties.

The report found that that 0.70% of all U.S. housing units had at least one foreclosure filing in 2016, which is the lowest annual foreclosure rate nationwide since 2006, when that figure was 0.58% of housing units.

The new data for December 2016 show that there were 85,919 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings, which was down 1% from November 2016 and down 17% from 2015. December represented the 15th consecutive month with a year-over-year decrease in foreclosure activity.

A total of 379,437 U.S. properties were repossessed by lenders (REO) in 2016, down 16% from 2015 and down 64% from the peak of 1,050,500 in 2010 to the lowest level since 2006.

A total of 478,857 U.S. properties started the foreclosure process in 2016, down 16% from 2015 and down 78% from the peak of 2,139,005 foreclosure starts in 2009 to the lowest level since ATTOM began tracking foreclosure starts in 2006.

New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland post top state foreclosure rates in 2016

21 states and the District of Columbia posted a year-over-year increase in REOs in 2016, including Massachusetts +61%; Alabama +32%; New York 21%; Virginia +9%; and New Jersey +4%.

States with the highest foreclosure rates in 2016 were New Jersey 1.86% of housing units with a foreclosure filing); Delaware 1.51%; Maryland 1.37%; Florida 1.18%; and Illinois 1.10%.

Atlantic City, Trenton, Rockford post top metro foreclosure rates in 2016

Among 216 metropolitan statistical areas with a population of at least 200,000, those with the highest foreclosure rate in 2016 were Atlantic City, New Jersey 3.39% of housing units with a foreclosure filing; Trenton, New Jersey 2.16%; Rockford, Illinois 1.54%; Philadelphia 1.53%; and Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida 1.46%.

Average time to foreclose jumps to new record high

+ U.S. properties foreclosed in the fourth quarter of 2016 had been in the foreclosure process an average of 803 days, a 29% jump from the previous quarter and a 27% increase from 2015 to the longest since ATTOM began tracking average foreclosure timelines in Q1 2007.

There were eight states where the average time to foreclose in the fourth quarter was more than 1,000 days: Utah (1,403); New Jersey (1,383); New York (1,283); Hawaii (1,220); Florida (1,186); Indiana (1,033); Illinois (1,024); and Pennsylvania (1,010).

Foreclosure activity increases in 12 states, 25 %of metro areas

12 states and the District of Columbia posted an increase in overall foreclosure activity in 2016 compared to 2015, including Delaware + 45%; Rhode Island +29%; Massachusetts +21%; Connecticut +21%; and Hawaii +20%.

Foreclosure starts increase in 15 states

15 states and the District of Columbia posted a year-over-year increase in foreclosure starts in 2016, including Delaware +37%; Connecticut +35%; Maine +30%; Rhode Island +26%; Arizona +15%; and Massachusetts +12%.