RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties, Thursday stated that foreclosure filings rose 6% in February compared to last year, but declined 2% from the previous month. Nevada, Arizona and Florida reported top state foreclosure rates during the month.
In the February 2010 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, RealtyTrac said that foreclosure filings, which include default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, were reported on 308,524 U.S. properties. The report also showed that one in every 418 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing in February.
In January, U.S. foreclosure filings were up 15% year-over-year, but down 10% from December 2009. Foreclosure filings were reported on 315,716 U.S. properties in January, with Nevada, Arizona, California, and Florida posting top state foreclosure rates.
Commenting on the February report, James Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac, stated, "The 6 percent year-over-year increase we saw in February was the smallest annual increase we've seen since January 2006, when we began calculating year-over-year increases, but it still marked the 50th consecutive month of year-over-year increases in foreclosure activity."
"This leveling of the foreclosure trend is not necessarily evidence that fewer homeowners are in distress and at risk for foreclosure, but rather that foreclosure prevention programs, legislation and other processing delays are in effect capping monthly foreclosure activity -- albeit at a historically high level that will likely continue for an extended period. In addition, severe winter weather appears to have temporarily slowed the processing of foreclosure records in some Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states," Saccacio noted.
Based on foreclosure activity by type, Default notices - Notices of Default and Lis Pendens - were reported on a total of 106,208 U.S. properties during the month, down 3% from February 2009, but up 3% from the previous month. Default notices dropped 25% from their peak of more than 142,000 in April 2009, but were still more than three times the number they were four years ago in February 2006, RealtyTrac stated.
In February, foreclosure auctions were scheduled for the first time on a total of 123,633 U.S. properties, 16% higher than the level reported in February 2009. Compared with the prior month, foreclosure auctions decreased 1%. Scheduled auctions were down 14% from their peak of more than 144,000 in August 2009. However, those were also about three times higher than the number reported in February 2006.
During the month, a total of 78,683 U.S. properties reported bank repossessions, a 6% rise from last year and a 10% decline from the previous month. Compared to the peak of bank repossessions of more than 92,000 in December 2009, those were down nearly 15% in February, but were at nearly twice the level reported in February 2006.
State wise, Nevada's foreclosure activity was down 30% from February 2009 and nearly 7% from the previous month. However, the state's foreclosure rate continued to rank highest in the nation for the 38th month in a row. As per the RealtyTrac report, one in every 102 Nevada housing units received a foreclosure filing during the month, more than four times the national average.
Further, RealtyTrac said that Arizona and Florida documented nearly identical foreclosure rates, with one in every 163 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing in both states. Although Arizona's foreclosure activity declined about 21% from the previous month, its rate was statistically slightly higher than Florida's rate and ranked second highest among the states.
While California's foreclosure rate ranked fourth highest among the states, Michigan's foreclosure rate ranked fifth highest among the states. In California, one in every 195 housing units received a foreclosure filing and in Michigan, one in every 226 housing units received a foreclosure filing during February.
Other states with foreclosure rates among the nation's 10 highest were Utah, Idaho, Illinois, Georgia and Maryland.
Further, RealtyTrac said that six states with the most foreclosure activity accounted for 61% of the national total in February. California reported the highest, with 68,562 properties receiving a foreclosure filing during the month. It represented a decline of 15% from February 2009 and about 5% from the previous month.
Florida continued to post the nation's second highest total, with 54,032 properties receiving a foreclosure filing in February. On a year-over-year basis, Florida's foreclosure activity increased more than 16%. It was up nearly 15% from the previous month.
In Michigan, 20,028 properties received a foreclosure filing for the month of February, an increase of 59% from February 2009 and a rise of nearly 14% from January. This boosted Michigan's total to third highest among the states.
Illinois posted the fourth highest total with 17,312 properties receiving a foreclosure filing. Arizona followed, with 16,718 properties receiving a foreclosure filing, and Texas came after Arizona, with 12,638 properties receiving a foreclosure filing in February. Other states with totals among the 10 highest in the country were Georgia, Ohio, Nevada, and Maryland.
Further, RealtyTrac stated that metro areas in the Sun Belt states of Nevada, Florida, California and Arizona continued to dominate the top 10 highest foreclosure rates among metropolitan areas with a population of 200,000 or more, but activity trends in these areas varied considerably.
The Las Vegas metro area documented the highest metro foreclosure rate, with one in every 90 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the month. This was despite a 9% decrease in foreclosure activity from the prior month.
Six of the other metro areas in the top 10 were in California or Arizona. The biggest monthly decrease among the top 10 was in the Phoenix metro area, where foreclosure activity dropped nearly 18%.
Meanwhile, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers metro area saw a 31% increase in foreclosure activity from the previous month. This area had the second highest metro foreclosure rate with one in every 92 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. Port St. Lucie reported the sixth highest, with a nearly 66% increase in foreclosure activity from the previous month.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.