A recent report by RealtyTrac provides fascinating insight into the number of foreclosures in the United States in 2011 and the foreclosure forecast for 2012. In fact, the findings present a clear-cut case of good news, bad news.

According to the report, the number of foreclosure filings in the United States -- including bank seizures, default notices and scheduled auctions -- fell by 34 percent from 2010 to 2011, with approximately 1,887,777 homes receiving some type of filing.

This constitutes the lowest foreclosure level since 2007.

What was behind this decline in foreclosure filings in 2011?

RealtyTrac experts believe that one of the primary reasons behind the decline in foreclosures filings in 2011 was the need for mortgage lenders to re-file thousands of foreclosures in state court systems. This step was necessitated after accusations surfaced that mortgage lenders wrongly foreclosed upon hundreds of thousands of homes using flawed procedures and/or partial data.

"A big part that is inflating the size of the decrease is a continuing extended foreclosure process," said RealtyTrac marketing communications director Daren Blomquist. "Especially in some states, we have a dysfunctional foreclosure process that is bogging down foreclosures, but more importantly, it's bogging down and hampering the housing recovery."

Blomquist indicated, however, that the decline in foreclosures is likely temporary and that the foreclosure rate will begin to steadily rise in 2012 as more foreclosures make their way through the courts.

Breaking the information down further, the RealtyTrac report ranked the 10 states with the highest foreclosure rates in the nation for 2011:

  1. Nevada
  2. Arizona
  3. California
  4. Georgia
  5. Utah
  6. Michigan
  7. Florida
  8. Illinois
  9. Colorado
  10. Idaho

Closer to home, the RealtyTrac report also found that in December 2011, only one in every 1,133 homes in Texas received a foreclosure filing notice.

Stay tuned for more from our San Antonio bankruptcy blog ...

Contact an experienced legal professional to learn more about bankruptcy and foreclosure.

This post is for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as legal advice.

(Please note: The firm handles only bankruptcy matters and is not involved in any pending class action lawsuits against banks/mortgage lenders. We take pride in reporting matters that are important to our community.)

Sources:

Reuters, "Foreclosure filings hit four-year low" Jan. 12, 2012

The San Antonio Express-News, "Foreclosures: The beginning of the end?" Jan. 13, 2012