Utah foreclosures up 136%

The number of Utahns facing foreclosure surged by more than 136 percent in the third quarter of this year, compared with the same period in 2007, according to data released today.

The state had the 10th-highest rate of foreclosure filings in the nation for the third quarter of 2008, with 4,867 people receiving at least one foreclosure-related notice from July through September, said foreclosure listing service RealtyTrac Inc. The number of filings was a 22 percent increase from the number in the second quarter of this year.

Among large metro areas, the Salt Lake City area had the 43rd-highest rate of foreclosure filings for the third quarter of 2008, with 2,062 properties receiving a foreclosure notice — a 64 percent increase from the same quarter a year ago.

Nationwide, nearly 766,000 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice from July through September, up 71 percent from a year earlier, the RealtyTrac report said.

In September alone, 1,746 Utahns received a foreclosure notice, a nearly 114 percent increase from the number in September 2007. Nationally, the number of foreclosure filings increased nearly 21 percent in September, compared with the same month a year ago.

The Provo/Orem area saw the greatest percentage increase in foreclosure filings among Utah metropolitan areas in September — a whopping 2,188 percent — compared with September 2007, with 183 properties receiving foreclosure notices. The St. George area had a 148 percent year-over-year increase, while the Ogden/Clearfield area saw a 142 percent rise in foreclosure filings.

In Salt Lake City, the number of foreclosure filings in September rose 58 percent compared with September 2007, and 26 percent from August to September 2008, to a total of 458 for the month.

By the end of the year, RealtyTrac expects more than a million bank-owned properties to have piled up on the market, representing around a third of all properties for sale in the U.S.

That's bad news for anyone who lives nearby and wants to sell his or her home. While foreclosure sales are booming in many areas, those properties are commanding deep discounts and pulling down neighboring property values. "It has a pretty significant impact in terms of pricing," said Rick Sharga of RealtyTrac.

RealtyTrac monitors default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions. More than 250,000 properties were repossessed by lenders nationwide in the third quarter, 81,000 of which were taken back last month.

Six states — California, Florida, Arizona, Ohio, Michigan and Nevada — accounted for more than 60 percent of all foreclosure activity in the quarter, with California alone making up more than a quarter of all U.S. foreclosure filings.