The rate for foreclosure properties in the US fell to its lowest rate for nine years in July, according to the latest report from CoreLogic. Inventory levels for foreclosures also dropped nationwide with some states showing particularly sharp declines. Although Florida continues to feature near the top of the states with the highest rates, all foreclosure statistics for the Sunshine State have decreased over the last year.
In the National Foreclosure Report for July released in early September, CoreLogic announced that foreclosure properties in the US were at their lowest rate for nine years. The 34,000 monthly completed foreclosures in July represented a drop of 16.5 per cent on the previous July. This brought the national rate to 0.91 per cent. The monthly rate of completed foreclosures is now approaching levels seen between 2000 and 2007, before the US property crash, confirming that the market continues on its path to full recovery.
Foreclosure Inventory
As well as the general rate, another important factor in gauging the health of the property market is the inventory of foreclosure properties in the US. This too saw a sharp drop in July to reach 355,000 homes at some stage of foreclosure, which translates to 29.1 per cent fewer properties than 12 months earlier.
This means that 0.9 per cent of all US properties with a mortgage are at some stage of foreclosure, down from 1.3 per cent in July 2015. In addition, the number of homes with a serious delinquency rate (with a mortgage default of over 90 days) fell to 2.9 per cent.
States with the Most Completed Foreclosures
Florida continues to rank as the state with the most foreclosure properties in the US. In the year to July, the Sunshine State registered 57,000 completed foreclosures, considerably ahead of the next two highest, Michigan with 45,000 and Texas with 27,000.
However, despite topping the nation for completed foreclosures, Florida is making considerable progress on bringing down its rate. The state no longer ranks at the top of the table for inventory or overall rate. This stood at 1 in every 808 properties in July, bringing Florida to sixth position in the national level led by Delaware with 1 in every 570 properties and New Jersey with 1 in every 610.
States with the most foreclosure properties in the US
Foreclosure inventories fell in all US states with the exception of North Dakota where layoffs in jobs in the energy sector were responsible for a 6 per cent rise in foreclosure properties. The biggest drops in the number of foreclosure homes on the market were seen in Nevada and Minnesota. Levels dropped by more than 39 per cent in both states. Florida came close to these with a 38.9 per cent reduction in its foreclosure inventory.
The two states that consistently rank at the top of all the metrics are New Jersey and New York. Both have the highest inventories of foreclosure properties in the US with rates of 3.3 and 3 per cent respectively. They also top the serious delinquency ratings with a level of 6.4 per cent in New Jersey and 5.5 per cent in New York.
Despite their high figures, both states have seen success in tackling their high foreclosure rates. “Importantly, New Jersey and New York have continued to work through their large inventory of homes in foreclosure proceedings,” said Anand Nallathambi, President and CEO of CoreLogic.
“The drop in both the rate and inventory levels for foreclosure properties in the US is a sure sign of the continued recovery in the housing market,” said Dies Poppeliers, Managing Director of BRIC Group. “The market is considerably stronger than it was a year ago, particularly in states like Florida, and new job creation is high. We fully expect to see the rate drop further over the next year.”
BRIC Group, an investment company specialising in global real estate opportunities, offers US real estate investments including turnkey properties in Florida and Houston, and land plots in Florida. BRIC Group is also developing The Coral resort, in Northeast Brazil, a luxury beachfront resort with land and villa investment opportunities. BRIC Group has been creating wealth for its clients since 1996 and has offices in Brazil, Dubai (consulting office), Hungary, Spain and the US.
(Source: CoreLogic)
