US foreclosure rates reach record high

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News on USA

16 September 2008

The volume of property foreclosures in the States escalated to a record high in August with analysts forecasting a further 10% fall in the average price of a property for sale in USA.

One in 416 homeowners in the States received a mortgage default notice last month, according to foreclosure data released by Realty Trac.

Furthermore, the number of repossessions in the USA has more than doubled compared to this time last year. Defaults have risen 10% in the last year and auctions are up 7%, the figures show.

The nation's highest foreclosure rate was for the 20th consecutive month recorded in Nevada, with one in 91 households in some stage of default. California came second, with one in 130 households. Arizona had the third-highest rate at one in 182 households, followed by Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Ohio, Colorado, Illinois and Indiana.

The US housing downturn shows few signs of improving at the moment, with average property prices in 20 metropolitan areas falling by 15.9% in June from a year earlier, according to the S&P/Case- Shiller index.

Analysts at Lehman Brothers predict that average prices may depreciate by a further 10% by the end of 2009.
There are 3.9 million unsold family homes, the most since at least 1982, according to the National Association of Realtors.

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