Foreclosures Filings Rise in July Following 78-Month Low

Foreclosure filings increased 2 percent in July, rising from a reported 78-month low in June, according to RealtyTrac's latest ""U.S. Foreclosure Market Report."":http://www.realtytrac.com/content/foreclosure-market-report/july-2013-us-foreclosure-market-report-7833 The worst foreclosure rates continue to take place in judicial states, according to the report.

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In fact, six of the top 10 foreclosure rates took place in judicial states in July, RealtyTrac found.

""While foreclosures are continuing to boil over in a select group of markets where state legislation and court rulings kept a lid on foreclosure activity during the worst of the housing crisis, the foreclosure boil-over markets are becoming fewer and farther between as lenders have caught up with the backlog of delayed foreclosures in some of the states with more lengthy judicial foreclosure process,"" said Daren Blomquist VP of RealtyTrac.

When compared to July 2012, foreclosure filings are still down by 32 percent. Blomquist also pointed out that July's foreclosure filings are 64 percent below the peak reached in March 2010 but 54 percent above the historical average prior to the housing crisis.

""There are a dozen states, however, where foreclosure activity levels in July were at or below average monthly levels prior to the bubble bursting,"" Blomquist added. ""Those states include Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Indiana, and Michigan, and we expect the number of states in this category to increase in the coming months.""

Nationally, one in every 1,001 homes had a foreclosure filing in July.

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Foreclosure starts rose month-over-month in 26 states and were up 6 percent overall.

Bank repossessions rose month-over-month in 29 states and were up 4 percent overall.

Florida ranked No. 1 for foreclosures in July with one in every 328 homes receiving a foreclosure filing during the month. July was the third month in a row Florida claimed the spot. The state's foreclosure filings have risen in 16 of the last 19 months, according to RealtyTrac.

Despite an 8 percent monthly increase and a 7 percent yearly rise in foreclosure filings in Florida, foreclosure starts fell 28 percent year-over-year in July.

The list of top five states for foreclosure filings over the month was rounded out by Maryland (one in every 598 homes), Ohio (one in every 639 homes), Connecticut (one in every 660 homes), and New Mexico (one in every 678 homes).

Foreclosures in Maryland have been on the rise on an annual basis for the past 13 months, and the foreclosure rate in July was 148 percent greater than the rate recorded a year ago.

On the other hand, foreclosures in Ohio have been declining for the past three months, though the state still claims one of the top spots on the list.

For the first time since February 2007, Arizona did not rank in the top 10. The state slid down to the 12th spot on the list.

Consistent with Florida's No. 1 ranking for the month of July, Florida metros take 9 of the top 10 spots on the list of large metro areas with the greatest foreclosure rates in July.

Albuquerque, New Mexico, was the only metro outside of Florida to make it on the list. The metro claimed the No. 6 spot with one in every 331 homes having foreclosure filings in July.

Jacksonville, Florida, took the No. 1 spot with one in every 230 homes receiving foreclosure filings in July.