Foreclosures Rise in January

Irvine, CA, Feb. 16, 2012 -- Foreclosures rose 8% nationally last month over December, but were down 15% from a year earlier, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said.

Nevertheless, some states posted sharp increases compared to January 2011. In New Hampshire, foreclosures jumped 62%. In Massachusetts, 75%.

That trend is expected to grow this year after last week's $25 billion settlement between the nation's biggest mortgage lenders and 49 state attorneys general over the industry's handling of foreclosures.

Many banks and mortgage servicers processed foreclosures without verifying documents, the so-called "robo-signing."

Major banks temporarily put foreclosures on hold after the problems came to light in 2010.

"The settlement will accelerate the foreclosures that are happening this year and it will accelerate the process of lenders catching up on the backlog of foreclosures that has been building up over the last year and a half," said Daren Blomquist, a vice president at RealtyTrac.