Record Foreclosure Filings in Third Quarter of 2009

RealtyTrac Inc. (link below) is reporting that there were a record number of foreclosure filings in the United States in the third quarter of 2009.

Approximately 938k homes - that's 938,000 - either received a default/auction notice or were actually repossessed in the third quarter of 2009.

That's the highest number ever recorded by RealtyTrac, and a whopping 23% increase over last year.

It's not just subprime mortgages that are leading homes into foreclosure - prime and alt-A loans are seeing a surge in foreclosure activity as well.

The reasons behind the surge in foreclosure activity are fairly easy to spot. The national unemployment rate is surging and people are making less money, meaning that many people are failing behind on their mortgage payments due to a lack of funds.

Many people are also choosing to "strategically" default on their mortgages due to a precipitous decline in real estate values throughout the country.

The pace of home foreclosures in the country is expected to continue to climb until the end of 2010.

In a completely unsurprising piece of news, Nevada, California and Florida continue to post the highest foreclosure rates of any states in the nation.

According to RealtyTrac, one out of every 136 US households received a foreclosure filing in the third quarter of 2009.

Not a pretty number, and this certainly won't help the overall health of the real estate market in the United States.

Source: RealtyTrac.com

Photo: Mike Licht