U.S. foreclosures at record rate in April

RealtyTrac sees bank repossessions spiking in coming months

By Robert Daniel, MarketWatch

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- U.S. foreclosure filings in April rose to a record, affecting one in every 374 housing units, and bank repossessions in particular may spike in the next few months, RealtyTrac reported.

Foreclosure filings -- defined as default notices, auction-sale notices, and bank repossessions -- were reported on 342,038 U.S. properties in April, up less than 1% from March and up 32% from April 2008, the Irvine, Calif., real-state consulting firm reported.

RealtyTrac began issuing its report on foreclosures in January 2005.

"Much of this activity is at the initial stages of foreclosure -- the default and auction stages -- while bank repossessions ... were down on a monthly and annual basis to their lowest level since March 2008," Chief Executive James J. Saccacio said in a statement.

"This suggests that many lenders and servicers are beginning foreclosure proceedings on delinquent loans that had been delayed by legislative and industry moratoria."

Bank repossessions are likely to spike in coming months as these loans move through the foreclosure process, he said. (more)