Housing Foreclosure Rate Drops Below Prior Recession

Irvine, CA

In March, as the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold on the nation, foreclosure rates were dropping to the lowest levels since the recession. According to research from ATTOM Data Solutions, there were 156,253 foreclosures in the US in the first quarter, a year-over-year decrease of 3%. In March, foreclosures in the US totaled 46,800, a month-over-month decrease of 3% and a year-over-year increase of 20%. The report shows a consistent decrease in foreclosure activity over the course of this recovery cycle.

“Prior to the more recent developments associated with the coronavirus pandemic our country is facing, employment and wages were up and the stock market soared to record levels, which contributed to Americans having access to multiple resources to keep up with their mortgages and avoid foreclosure,” Todd Teta, chief product officer at ATTOM, tells GlobeSt.com. “At the same time, home values spiked and interest rates fell to historic lows. That offered homeowners the opportunity to refinance their loans and lower their mortgage payments, while also providing greater collateral that could be used to get those more-affordable loans.”