Foreclosure filings worse in March 2008

Foreclosure filings are getting worse again in March according to RealtyTrac. In a very alarming sign bank repossessions are up 135 percent from March last year which indicates that a large number of homeowners are throwing in the towel and refuse to refinance into new loans.

Here are the key stats for March 2008:
total foreclosure filings up 5% mom
total foreclosure filings up 57% yoy
234685 total filings on the Mid March
1 in 538 households with foreclosure notices

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James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac., comments on bank reposessions:
“The March numbers show that overall foreclosure activity so far this year continues to run nearly 60 percent above the levels we saw last year. On a year-over-year basis, default notices were up nearly 57 percent and bank repossessions were up nearly 129 percent, but auction notices were up only 32 percent, indicating that more defaulting homeowners are simply walking away and deeding their properties back to the foreclosing lender. This deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure process allows the lender to take possession of a property without putting it up for public foreclosure auction.”

Diana Olick, CNBC real estate reporter, is in Florida :
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source: FORECLOSURE ACTIVITY INCREASES 5 PERCENT IN MARCH
By RealtyTrac Staff
http://www.realtytrac.com/ContentManagement/pressrelease.aspx?ChannelID=9&ItemID=4450&accnt=64847

source: Diana Olick, CNBC Real Estate Reporter
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=712869446