A sure-fire sign of an improving real estate market is the fall of foreclosure activity, and luckily those trends are down throughout the nation for the eighth consecutive month, according to RealtyTrac‘s newly released data.
Monitoring foreclosure activity throughout the nation down to a city level, the data showed that foreclosure activity is below 2006 average monthly levels.
However, not all states are measuring equally. RealtyTrac reported 18 states and the District of Columbia posted a year-over-year increase in foreclosures. The highest foreclosure rates were seen in Delaware, Florida, Nevada, Maryland and New Jersey.
A few metro areas witnessed gains in foreclosure activity as well, including Rockford, Illinois; Trenton, New Jersey; Tuscon, Arizona and St. Petersburg, Florida.
Despite falling oil prices, the housing market in Houston is fairing pretty well. On a monthly and annual basis in the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metro area, foreclosure rates have fallen by 7.56 percent and 12.72 percent, respectively. In May 2016, a reported 1,064 total homes were in or going through the foreclosure process.
Harris County saw a total of 693 homes under foreclosure, or one in every 2,362 homes locally. Over April 2016, foreclosure activity dipped 14.23 percent. It fell 14.76 percent over the same time last year.
In Chambers County, foreclosure activity fell 71.43 percent annually, while Austin and Waller counties both posted 100 percent dips in foreclosure. Both counties had no foreclosures or homes in the foreclosure process in May 2016.
Liberty County was the exception in the Houston metro area. Since April, foreclosure activity picked up 40 percent on a monthly basis and 70 percent year-over-year in May. There were a total of 28 foreclosures in the county in May 2016.
