foreclosures in the first half of the year fell 11%

 
   By Nathalie Tadena 
 

The number of foreclosures in the first half of the year fell 11% in the first half of the year, according to the latest report from market researcher RealtyTrac.
There were 1,045,801 U.S. properties with default notices, auction sale notices or bank repossessions in the first six months of the year, a 2% increase from the prior six months. About 0.8% of all U.S. housing units, or one in 126, had at least one foreclosure filing in the first half of the year, RealtyTrac reported.
The firm reported overall foreclosure activity fell in the second quarter, primarily due to a drop in bank reposssessions. However, the latest quarter also saw the first year-over-year increase in quarterly foreclosure starts since the fourth quarter of 2009. RealtyTrac reported 311,010 properties started the foreclosure process during the quarter, a 9% increase from the prior quarter and a 6% jump from a year earlier.
"Additional scrutiny on how lenders and servicers process foreclosures, along with aggressive foreclosure prevention efforts by the federal government and several state governments, continue to keep a lid on the foreclosure problem at a national level," said Chief Executive Brandon Moore.
Mr. Moore added that the increase in foreclosure starts in the first half of the year will likely translate into more short sales and bank resposessions in the second half of the year and into 2013.
U.S. properties foreclosed in the second quarter were in the foreclosure process an average of 378 days, a record high going back to the first quarter of 2007, the report said.
Despite a 61% year-over-year drop in foreclosure activity, Nevada posted the nation's highest foreclosure rate in the first half of 2012. One in 57 Nevada housing units had a foreclosure filing during the period. A total of 20,618 Nevada properties had at least one filing during the first half of the year, a 43% drop from the prior six months.
Arizona foreclosure activity in the first half of 2012 decreased 37% from the same period in 2011 and slipped 6% from the prior six months. However, the state still had the nation's second highest foreclosure rate, with every one in 58 housing units with a foreclosure filing.
Georgia had the third highest rate in the first half of 2012, with one in every 63 housing units with a foreclosure filing. California and Florida had the fourth and fifth highest state foreclosure rates, respectively.

Write to Nathalie Tadena at nathalie.tadena@dowjones.com http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20120712-700017.html