Bargain Network Data Shows One New Foreclosure Filing for Every 822 U.S. Households

Business Wire, May 14, 2007

Despite 10 Percent Dip in April Listings, U.S. Foreclosure Listing Activity Remains High

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- The latest foreclosure listing data compiled by Bargain Network (bargain.com), a leading online provider of real estate foreclosures, pre-foreclosures and for-sale-by-owner property listings and information, shows approximately 140,711 properties entering various states of the foreclosure process in April 2007. Compared to last month's foreclosure listing count of 158,013, April foreclosure filings represent a 10 percent reduction over March filings. Despite the slight decline in the total number of foreclosures recorded, April represents the second highest foreclosure listing activity month year to date. On average, the total number of households entering some phase of the foreclosure process in April was nearly 32 percent higher than the previous six months (November 2006 - March 2007).

Top Five States Represent 55 Percent of All Foreclosure Listing Activity

In April 2007, five states accounted for 55 percent of the total number of foreclosure filings for the month; four of which have been in the top total U.S. filings for three consecutive months. California had the highest number of foreclosure home listings for the month, with 25,198 homes entering into some phase of the foreclosure process, or one foreclosure for every 484 households. California accounted for nearly 18 percent of the 140,711 total U.S. filings in April 2007. Florida ranked second in volume with 24,523 total foreclosure home filings, or one foreclosure for every 298 households. Florida accounted for nearly 17 percent of the total U.S. foreclosure listings in April 2007.

Texas posted the third highest foreclosure listing activity numbers, recording more than 10,000 properties entering the foreclosure process in April 2007, a 10 percent increase over March 2007. Texas accounted for 7 percent of the total U.S. filings, with one foreclosure for every 796 households. Fourth and fifth ranked states, Colorado and Illinois, averaged a 25 percent reduction in foreclosure activity from last month, but still accounted for approximately 6 percent of the total U.S. filings in April 2007. Colorado recorded nearly 9,000 homes entering the foreclosure process. Illinois listed approximately 8,000 homes in some stage of foreclosure.

Colorado's foreclosure saturation rate was the second greatest in the nation for April 2007, with approximately one filing for every 205 households, over 16 times the national average.

While Some States Level Off, Washington DC Rises to the Top in Foreclosure Listings

Washington DC recorded the greatest jump in foreclosure filing activity during April 2007 with a 42 percent increase over last month. Foreclosure activity in Maryland increased by roughly 18 percent, and was followed closely by Wisconsin and Virginia (each posting more than a 17 percent increase). In addition, Texas and Wyoming foreclosure listings rose 10 percent. The six states combined equated to 12,900 total foreclosure filings for the month of April 2007, or 9% of the total US foreclosure activity.

Total households entering some phase of the foreclosure process in April decreased for 33 of the 50 states over the previous month's listings. Hawaii reported only half the number of households entering the foreclosure process in April 2007 versus March with 221 filings in April compared to 116 filings in March. Maine reduced the total number of foreclosure filings by 30 percent over the previous month. Illinois, California, North Dakota and Colorado each reduced the number of foreclosure filings by more than 20 percent overall in April 2007.

Single Family Homes Lead the Way

On a nationwide level, the bulk of the foreclosure activity in April - approximately 88 percent - occurred in the Single Family Residence market. The Townhome and Condo markets, which represent a much smaller portion of the overall real estate market, contributed approximately seven percent of the foreclosure filings for April 2007. The remaining five percent of foreclosure home listing activity comprised Land, Commercial Buildings, Multi-Family Residences, Mobile Homes, etc.

* Single Family Residence:

Nationally, the average percentage of Single Family Residence foreclosure filings per state was approximately 88 percent. Only five states reported less than 80 percent of their foreclosure activity in the Single Family Residence market segment, including Florida, Rhode Island, Alaska, Massachusetts and Hawaii (each ranged between 63 to 79 percent). Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Washington DC, Michigan, Mississippi, Alabama and Iowa exceeded the national average for Single Family Residence foreclosure activity with averages ranging from 96 to 99 percent.

* Condo/Townhome:

Condo/Townhome properties accounted for approximately seven percent of the total foreclosure filings during the month of April. Seven states posted notably higher than average rates of Condo/Townhome foreclosures, including Hawaii, Florida, Alaska, Virginia, Maryland, California, and Delaware. In these states, between 10 to 29 percent of the foreclosure activity involved Townhomes or Condos. Hawaii topped the list at 29 percent, Florida and Alaska each recorded 13 percent.