Despite ongoing Federal and State Government measures, home foreclosures continue to rise. US home loans fell at a record pace in July as 1 in every 355 households with a loan received a foreclosure filing (more than 360,000), as stated by RealtyTrac.
As unemployment continues to rise, foreclosure filings climb. Foreclosure activity shot up 7 percent in July from June. Keeping up with loan repayments is getting increasingly difficult for wage earners as they have either had their wages cut or lost their job.
US states most affected are generally those that had a big surge in house prices in housing boom earlier this decade. These include California, Nevada, Florida and Arizona. Going against the trend was Michigan where foreclosure activity fell heavily in July due to a very large drop in scheduled auctions as a new state law takes affect that freezes foreclosure proceedings an extra 90 days for homeowners who commit to work on a loan modification plan.
On the flip side, buyers of foreclosed properties are in a very strong position as the number of foreclosed properties increases (supply) and prices generally continue to fall.
