Foreclosures drop 10 percent in January, but surge expected in next few months

Foreclosure activity in the U.S. declined 10 percent in January from a month earlier, according to real estate data tracking company RealtyTrac. Despite the positive news, one in every 409 homes received a foreclosure notice last month, a rate that put January 2010 15 percent higher than the same month a year earlier. James Saccacio, CEO of RealtyTrac, said that the decline in January from December is in line with foreclosure patterns seen during the same time period in previous years. “January foreclosure numbers are exhibiting a pattern very similar to a year ago: a double-digit percentage jump in December foreclosure activity followed by a 10 percent drop in January,” Saccacio said. “If history repeats itself, we will see a surge in the numbers over the next few months as lenders foreclose on delinquent loans where neither the existing loan modification programs or the new short sale and deed-in-lieu of foreclosure alternatives works.” Perhaps most startlingly, six states, including Florida, comprised about 60 percent of the overall foreclosures seen across the country, according to the report. New York, however, showed lower levels of foreclosure in the first month of 2010, ranking 41st in the total number of properties with foreclosure filings in January 2010, RealtyTrac determined. TRD