Foreclosure filings – including default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions – surged 10% in January compared with December and were up 5% compared with January 2023, according to ATTOM.
A total of 33,270 U.S. properties saw foreclosure filings during the month.
Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM, says the increase “may be partially attributed to the typical post-holiday progression of filings through the legal system.”
“However, other external factors may be at play such as escalating interest rates, inflation, employment shifts and other market dynamics,” Barber adds. “We remain vigilant in monitoring these trends to understand their full impact on foreclosure activity.”
Lenders repossessed 3,954 U.S. properties through completed foreclosures (REOs) in January 2024, an increase of 13% compared with the previous month and ups 1% compared with a year ago.
It was the first month-over-month increase in completed foreclosures since July 2023.
States that had at least 50 or more REOs and that saw the greatest monthly increase in January included Michigan (up 200%); Minnesota (up 47%); California (up 43%); Pennsylvania (up 36%); and Missouri (up 34%).
Among the U.S. cities with a population of at least 200,000, those that saw the greatest number of REOs included Detroit (609 REOs); Chicago (194 REOs); New York (163 REOs); Philadelphia (107 REOs); and San Francisco (107 REOs).
States with the highest foreclosure rates were Delaware (one in every 2,269 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Nevada (one in every 2,272 housing units); Indiana (one in every 2,499 housing units); Maryland (one in every 2,588 housing units); and New Jersey (one in every 2,647 housing units).
Cities with the highest foreclosure rates included Spartanburg, S.C. (one in every 1,579 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Columbia, S.C. (one in every 1,651 housing units); Cleveland, Ohio (one in every 1,742 housing units); Detroit, Mich. (one in every 1,799 housing units); and Las Vegas (one in every 1,923 housing units).
Other than Cleveland, Detroit and Las Vegas, among the metropolitan areas with a population greater than 1 million, those with the worst foreclosure rates in January included: Riverside, Calif. (one in every 1,944 housing units); and Indianapolis (one in every 2,235 housing units).
Lenders started the foreclosure process on 21,770 U.S. properties in January, an increase of 6% compared with December and up 5% from a year ago.
States that saw the greatest number of foreclosures starts in January included California (2,719 foreclosure starts); Texas (2,613 foreclosure starts); Florida (2,330 foreclosure starts); New York (1,341 foreclosure starts); and Illinois (913 foreclosure starts).
Cities with the greatest number of foreclosure starts included: New York (1,470 foreclosure starts); Houston (1,015 foreclosure starts); Los Angeles (817 foreclosure starts); Miami (804 foreclosure starts); and Chicago (763 foreclosure starts).
Photo: Luis Georg Müller
