More Foreclosures -No big surprise…
RealtyTrac says it’s seeing early signs that foreclosures may have peaked in some hard-hit markets, but with three-quarters of the nation’s most populated metros showing continued increases, the numbers illustrate just how fragile the housing recovery really is.
According to the company’s Midyear 2010 Metropolitan Foreclosure Market Report, 154 of the 206 U.S. metro areas with a population of at least 200,000 posted year-over-year increases in foreclosure activity. Four states – Florida, California, Nevada and Arizona – accounted for all top 10 metro foreclosure rates.
“The fragile stability achieved in many local housing markets hinges on improvements in the underlying economy, specifically job growth,” said James J. Saccacio, RealtyTrac’s CEO. “If unemployment remains persistently high and foreclosure prevention efforts only delay the inevitable, then we could continue to see increased foreclosure activity and a corresponding weakness in home prices in many metro areas.”
