CoreLogic Report Shows Year-to-Year Decline in Foreclosures – But Not in Connecticut

The May National Foreclosure Report from CoreLogic gives solid evidence that, at least across the U.S., the real estate market is rebounding. Nevertheless, declines in foreclosures aren’t universal, with Connecticut being in the top five states with high inventory.

Major drops characterize completed foreclosures and national foreclosure inventory. Specifically, the positives include:
• Completed foreclosures decreased 27 percent from May 2012 to May 2013.
• Shadow inventory is below 2 million homes and is the lowest it has been since 2008.
• National foreclosure inventory dropped 29 percent from May 2012 to May 2013, with a 3.3 percent month-to-month decrease.
• Only 5.6 percent of all mortgages are seriously delinquent.

About these improvements, Dr. Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic, said in a statement: “The stock of seriously delinquent homes, which is the main driver of shadow inventory, is at the lowest level since December 2008. Over the last year, it has decreased in 42 states by double-digit figures, resulting in rapid declines in shadow inventory for the first quarter of 2013.”

But along with 17 straight months of decreases comes the sobering fact that the real estate market is far from out of the woods. As CoreLogic pointed out, 52,000 foreclosures were completed nationally in May, and while this is down from the market’s high, it’s still significantly above the 21,000 per month average between 2000 and 2006.

While national figures paint of a picture of calm after a storm, Connecticut, with 4.1 percent foreclosure inventory, places in the top five highest states. Out of all 50, Florida remained on top with 8.8 percent foreclosure inventory, and Wyoming, with 0.5 percent, had the lowest.

Along with this distinction, Connecticut’s year-to-year declines weren’t anything notable. While certain states hit particularly hard by the housing crash, such as California and Arizona, saw year-to-year declines of 50 percent or more, Connecticut, out of all using a judicial foreclosure process, saw just a 0.4 percent decrease. As well, 6.9 percent of all properties with mortgages in the state are seriously delinquent.