U.S. foreclosure filings fell in the first quarter to the lowest level since early 2008 amid an ongoing backlog following last year’s halt in activity, according to a RealtyTrac report on Aril 14th 2011.
Default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions were reported on 681,153 properties, down 14.8 percent from the previous quarter and a drop of 26.9 percent from the first quarter of 2010.
It was the lowest level of foreclosures since the first quarter of 2008.
Nevada maintained the highest U.S. state foreclosure rate as one in every 35 homes had a foreclosure filing. California alone accounted for nearly a quarter of overall foreclosure activity. Washington saw one in every 779 homes receive a foreclosure filing in March 2011.
Foreclosures add supply to a housing market that already has too much inventory available which helps to keep home prices down. But with very strong home sales over the past quarter and reduced foreclosures, the table is set for home prices to stabilize. Let’s hope so.