Foreclosure Inventory Falls in US

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The U.S. foreclosure inventory decreased 32 percent in July compared to last year, according to the latest numbers from CoreLogic.

The inventory included approximately 949,000 homes in some stage of foreclosure. As of July, the foreclosure inventory represented 2.4 percent of all homes with a mortgage, compared to 3.4 percent last year. 

The report also showed positive news for the foreclosure activity. The number of homes lost to foreclosure dropped 25 percent in July from last year. There were 49,000 completed foreclosures in July, compared to 65,000 last year. The number decreased 8.6 percent from June. Earlier this month RealtyTrac reported a yearly 32 percent decrease in national foreclosure filings.

"Every state posted a year-over-year decline in foreclosures and serious delinquencies fell to the lowest level since December 2008," Anand Nallathambi, chief executive of CoreLogic said in the release. "Not surprisingly, non-judicial states have come the farthest the fastest in reducing shadow inventory and lowering delinquency rates."  

The foreclosure rate is now at the March 2009 level, CoreLogic reports. The firm has a positive outlook for the remainder of 2013. 

"Continued strength in the housing market will contribute to our outlook for ongoing improvement in the stock of distressed assets through the end of this year," CoreLogic chief economist Mark Fleming said. 

Highlights as of July 2013:

• The five states with the highest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in July 2013 were: Florida (110,000),California (65,000), Michigan (61,000), Texas (45,000) and Georgia (41,000).These five states account for almost half of all completed foreclosures nationally.

• The five states with the lowest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in July 2013 were: District of Columbia (141), North Dakota (484), West Virginia (505), Hawaii (512) and Maine (754).

• The five states with the highest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Florida (8.1 percent), New Jersey (5.9 percent), New York (4.7 percent), Connecticut (4.0 percent) and Maine (4.0 percent).

• The five states with the lowest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Wyoming (0.4 percent), Alaska (0.6 percent), North Dakota (0.7 percent), Nebraska (0.7 percent) and Colorado (0.8 percent).