Share of 'Zombie' Foreclosures Growing

Irvine, CA, Feb. 9, 2015 -- The share of so-called "zombie" foreclosures is growing, although the absolute number is falling, according to tracking firm RealtyTrac.

The firm said that 142,462 homes actively in the foreclosure process had been vacated by the homeowners prior to the bank repossessing the property as of the end of January.

That's 25% of all active foreclosures, up from 21% last year. However, the total number of zombie foreclosures is down 6% from a year ago.

“While the number of vacated zombie foreclosures is down from a year ago, they represent an increasing share of all foreclosures because they tend to be the problem cases still stuck in the pipeline,” said Daren Blomquist vice president at RealtyTrac.

“Additionally, the states where overall foreclosure activity has been increasing over the past year — counter to the national trend — tend to be states with a longer foreclosure process more susceptible to the zombie problem.”