Foreclosure proceedings plateau in April, report finds

The U.S. foreclosure crisis has started to plateau, with the number of U.S. homes in some stage of the process declining 9 percent in April from the month before, according to RealtyTrac.

But in Washington state foreclosure filings jumped 40 percent last month. And in King County the increase was even greater: 54 percent.

Nationally, homes receiving some kind of foreclosure filing in April — a notice of default, scheduled auction or bank repossession — declined 2 percent from April 2009, the first year-over-year drop since the Irvine, Calif., company began publishing its monthly report in January 2005.

One in every 387 homes received a foreclosure filing last month, RealtyTrac said.

In Washington the ratio was one in 640, in King County one in 650. But while the percentage of homes in foreclosure here is smaller, their number is increasing dramatically.

In King County, 1,282 homes received some kind of foreclosure filing in April, up 66 percent from April 2009.

While the national year-over-year decline was an "important milestone," RealtyTrac Chief Executive James J. Saccacio said, bank repossessions in April hit a monthly record, indicating that lenders were beginning to take final action against troubled borrowers long in limbo. Many foreclosures were frozen last year as several foreclosure moratoriums were imposed and the Obama administration pressured lenders to work with defaulting homeowners.

"Foreclosure activity has begun to plateau — but at a very high level that will not drop off in the near future," Saccacio said. "We expect a similar pattern to continue for most of this year, with the overall numbers staying at a high level and ripples of activity hitting the various stages of the foreclosure process as lenders systematically work through the backlog."

A total of 103,672 properties received notices of default in April, a 12 percent decrease from March and a 27 percent drop from April 2009. Foreclosure auctions fell 13 percent from the month before to 137,643, a 1 percent increase from April 2009. And bank repossessions hit a monthly record of 92,432 in April, an increase of 1 percent from March and a 45 percent increase from April 2009.

In King County, 375 homes were repossessed last month, up from 293 in March and 172 in April 2009.

Foreclosure rates were highest in Nevada, Arizona, Florida and California, RealtyTrac said. Washington ranked 24th.

Clark County (Vancouver) led the state in foreclosure filings last month, with one in 368 homes receiving some kind of notice — a larger percentage than the nation as a whole.

Pierce County ranked second with a ratio of one in 399. Snohomish County was third at one in 416.

Seattle Times business reporter Eric Pryne contributed to this report.