October shows foreclosure filings still soaring
Foreclosure filings in Dane County were up threefold in October compared to September, according to the monthly foreclosure filing report from RealtyTrac.
Nationally, foreclosure filings were up 5 percent from September, with almost 280,000 properties getting papers filed for default, auction sales and bank repossessions.
Locally, 120 foreclosures were filed in Dane County in October, or one in every 1,732 housing units, compared to 45 filings in September. The October 2008 filings were down 25 percent from the 162 filings in October 2007.
The national foreclosure situation has slowed, RealtyTrac said, thanks in large part to legislation in several states requiring more advanced warning to homeowners and longer lead times to papers being filed.
Even so, October marked the 34th straight month when foreclosures increased from the same month in the previous year.
"While the intention behind legislation to prevent more foreclosures is admirable, without a more integrated approach that includes significant loan modifications, the net effect may be merely delaying inevitable foreclosures," said James Saccacio, RealtyTrac's chief executive officer. "The apparent slowing of foreclosure activity understates the severity of the foreclosure problem in these states."
On the state level, Wisconsin ranked 31st out of 50 states plus the District of Columbia in foreclosure activity, with 1,889 foreclosure filings in October, or one out of every 1,341 housing units.
The worst state continued to be Nevada, with one foreclosure filing for every 74 housing units, more than six times the national average of one for every 452 housing units.
In the Midwest, Iowa had the lowest foreclosure rate with one filing for every 2,641 housing units while Michigan had the worst rate in the region with one filing for every 396 housing units.
The 10 worst states in foreclosure filing rates were Nevada, Arizona, Florida, California, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, Illinois and Ohio.
The state with the lowest foreclosure rate was Vermont, where papers were filed on one out of every 23,812 housing units. Nebraska had the second lowest rate at one filing for every 15,497 housing units.
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