Foreclosure Activity Falls Sharply in October

Irvine, CA, Nov. 11, 2010 -- The number of home repossessions last month fell by the sharpest margin this year, as several major lenders temporarily halted most or all of their foreclosures, according to foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc.

Home repossessions dropped 9% from September to October, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.

The drop is due largely to allegations that foreclosure paperwork has been handled improperly and lenders began a foreclosure moratorium. However, as lenders sort out this issue, it's likely that foreclosures should begin picking up again, but at a much slower pace.

"We will still see some softness in the numbers in November, just because of the lag time from when you announce something like this and when you can actually enact it and then reverse it," said Rick Sharga, a senior vice president at RealtyTrac.

In all, 93,236 homes were taken back by lenders in October, down from a peak 102,134 in September.

Despite the sharp drop, October's tally was still 21% higher than a year ago. Lenders have foreclosed on an average of more than 91,000 properties each month this year.

The number of properties receiving an initial default notice -- the first step in the foreclosure process -- slipped 2% last month from September, and was down 19% versus October last year.