Monday, June 30, 2008

US home foreclosures reach another high in May

Source : Channel NewsAsia - 13 Jun 2008

Surging US home foreclosures rose to another record in May, according to a survey Friday which showed home foreclosure actions hit a fresh all-time high of 261,255.

A building up for auction in Baltimore

The survey by research firm RealtyTrac said the percentage of foreclosure actions — including default, auction sale notices and bank repossessions — rose seven percent from the prior month and spiked 48 percent from a year ago.

The report showed one in every 483 US households received a foreclosure filing during the month as the housing market slump continued to buffet the world’s largest economy.

“May was the third straight month where we’ve seen a month-to-month increase in foreclosure activity,” said James Saccacio, chief executive of RealtyTrac.

“The nationwide rate of increase for default notices and foreclosure auction notices slowed in May, with default notices up just one percent from the previous month and auction notices down three percent from the previous month,” he said.

Bank repossession actions continued to mount, however.

Parts of California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona have been hit especially badly by the US housing meltdown, which started in early 2006 following a multiyear building boom. - AFP/ms


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