“Even with these increases, activity remains well below historic highs,” said ATTOM CEO Rob Barber. “The current trend appears to reflect a gradual normalization in foreclosure volumes as market conditions adjust and some homeowners continue to navigate higher housing and borrowing costs.”
Nationwide, one in every 3,871 housing units had a foreclosure filing in October. The highest state-level foreclosure rates were in:
- Florida: one in every 1,829 housing units
- South Carolina: one in every 1,982 housing units
- Illinois: one in every 2,570 housing units
- Delaware: one in every 2,710 housing units
- Nevada: one in every 2,747 housing units
Among metro areas with populations of at least 1 million, Tampa, Fla., posted the highest foreclosure rate at one in every 1,373 housing units.
The spike stemmed from the resumption of local data collection, which added backlogged filings and is expected to level off in November, ATTOM said.
Foreclosures often rise in October due to slowed summer processing, end-of-quarter portfolio cleanups, seasonal household financial strain and courts ramping up after summer recess.
These factors create a backlog that pushes many foreclosure actions into early fall, making October a traditional peak month.
Other top metros in Florida included Jacksonville and Orlando, with Riverside, Calif., and Cleveland also making the list.
Lenders initiated foreclosure proceedings on 25,129 properties in October — up 6% from September and up 20% from a year ago.
States with the highest number of starts were:
- Florida: 4,136
- Texas: 3,080
- California: 2,685
- Illinois: 1,252
- New York: 1,165
Some major metros bucked the national trend and posted year-over-year declines in foreclosure starts.
Largest drops occurred in Milwaukee; Indianapolis; Louisville, Ky.; Washington, D.C., and Detroit.
Lenders completed 3,872 foreclosures (REOs) in October — up 2% from the previous month and 32% year-over-year.
States with the highest number of REOs included Texas, California, Florida, Pennsylvania and Illinois.
Among major metros, Chicago led with 122 REOs, followed by Atlanta, New York, Houston and Riverside, Calif.
