WASHINGTON (MNI) – The following is the text of the RealtyTrac
January report on U.S. foreclosure activity, published Thursday:

RealtyTrac (www.realtytrac.com), the leading online marketplace for
foreclosure properties, today released its U.S. Foreclosure Market
Report for January 2012, which shows foreclosure filings — default
notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on
210,941 U.S. properties in January. That was a 3 percent increase from
the previous month but still down 19 percent from January 2011. The
report also shows one in every 624 U.S. housing units with a foreclosure
filing during the month.

“Although overall foreclosure activity was down from a year ago for
the 16th straight month in January, we continue to see signs on a local
and regional level that the frozen-up foreclosure process is beginning
to thaw,” said Brandon Moore, CEO of RealtyTrac. “Foreclosure activity
increased on a year-over-year basis for the first time in more than 12
months in Florida, Illinois, Indiana and Pennsylvania, following a
pattern we saw in late 2011 in states such as California, Arizona and
Massachusetts.

“We expect the pattern of increasing foreclosures to continue in
the coming months, especially given the finalized mortgage and
foreclosure settlement reached in early February between 49 state
attorneys general and five of the nation’s largest lenders,” Moore
continued. “The settlement sets forth clear guidelines for lenders and
servicers to follow when foreclosing, which should allow them to push
through some of the delayed foreclosures from last year. Other
roadblocks to foreclosure are still in place at the state level,
however, including legislation altering the foreclosure process and
lawsuits against lenders. We expect to see somewhat uneven trends in
local and regional foreclosure numbers going forward as lenders work
through these additional legislative and legal roadblocks.”

Foreclosure Activity by Type

Default notices (NOD, LIS) were filed for the first time on a total
of 58,362 U.S. properties in January, unchanged from the previous month
but down 22 percent from January 2011.

Default notices increased more than 20 percent on a year-over-year
basis in several states, including Connecticut (23 percent),
Massachusetts (27 percent), Florida (36 percent), Maryland (100 percent)
and Pennsylvania (112 percent). Florida default notices increased on an
annual basis for the third straight month, and default notices in
Pennsylvania reached a 15-month high.

Foreclosure auctions (NTS, NFS) were scheduled on 86,037 U.S.
properties in January, up 1 percent from December, but still down 20
percent from January 2011.

Scheduled auctions increased more than 20 percent on a
year-over-year basis in several states, including Minnesota (24
percent), Massachusetts (57 percent), South Carolina (79 percent),
Indiana (141 percent) and Illinois (141 percent). Minnesota scheduled
auctions increased on an annual basis for the third straight month, and
scheduled auctions reached a 17-month high in Indiana and a 15-month
high in Illinois.

Lenders repossessed (REO) a total of 66,542 U.S. properties in
January, an 8 percent increase from December but still a 15 percent
decrease from January 2011.

REO activity increased at least 30 percent on a year-over-year
basis in several states, including Wisconsin (30 percent), Connecticut
(39 percent), Illinois (52 percent), Indiana (60 percent), New Hampshire
(62 percent) and Massachusetts (75 percent). REO activity increased on
an annual basis for the fourth straight month in Massachusetts and for
the third straight month in Wisconsin and Illinois. REO activity in
January reached a 16-month high in Illinois and a 15-month high in
Indiana.

Nevada, California, Arizona post top state foreclosure rates

With one in every 198 housing units with a foreclosure filing in
January, Nevada posted the nation’s highest foreclosure rate for the
61st straight month – despite an 8 percent decrease in foreclosure
activity from December. A total of 5,931 Nevada properties had a
foreclosure filing in January, down 52 percent from January 2011 and a
52-month low.

California foreclosure activity dropped to a 50-month low in
January, but the state still posted the nation’s second highest
foreclosure rate: one in every 265 housing units with a foreclosure
filing during the month. A total of 51,584 California properties had a
foreclosure filing in January, down 23 percent from January 2011

Arizona foreclosure activity increased 14 percent from the previous
month, helping the state post the nation’s third highest foreclosure
rate: one in every 325 housing units with a foreclosure filing during
the month. A total of 8,749 Arizona properties had a foreclosure filing
in January, down 44 percent from January 2011.

The year-over-year drops in foreclosure activity in Nevada,
California and Arizona were driven by low foreclosure starts in all
three states. In Nevada, default notices averaged fewer than 1,200 per
month from October through January after averaging more than 4,000 per
month in the first nine months of 2011. In California, default notices
averaged fewer than 18,000 per month in December and January after
averaging more than 28,000 per month from August through November. In
Arizona, scheduled auctions (the first foreclosure notice in the state)
averaged fewer than 4,300 per month in December and January after
averaging more than 7,500 per month in the previous 12 months.

Foreclosure starts were also at low levels in Oregon, where
scheduled auctions dropped to a 40-month low, and in Washington, where
scheduled auctions averaged fewer than 1,000 per month from October
through January after averaging more than 2,100 per month in the first
nine months of 2011.

One in every 328 Georgia housing units had a foreclosure filing in
January, the nation’s fourth highest state foreclosure rate, and one in
every 354 Michigan housing units had a foreclosure filing, the nation’s
fifth highest state foreclosure rate.

Other states with foreclosure rates ranking among the top 10 were
Florida, Illinois, Delaware, Colorado and Indiana.

California cities account for nine of top 10 metro foreclosure
rates

Nine out of the nation’s 10 highest foreclosure rates among
metropolitan areas with a population of 200,000 or more were in
California. The only exception was Las Vegas, which ranked No. 5 with
one in every 172 housing units with a foreclosure filing in January.

Reporting one in every 140 housing units with a foreclosure filing
during the month, Stockton, Calif., posted the nation’s highest metro
foreclosure rate for the fourth month in a row, followed by Modesto at
No. 2 (one in every 143 housing units), Riverside-San Bernardino at No.
3 (one in 164 housing units), and Vallejo-Fairfield at No. 4 (one in
every 168 housing units).

Only four cities in the top 20 metro foreclosure rates posted
annual increases in foreclosure activity: Lansing-East Lansing, Mich.
(20 percent increase); Orlando (55 percent increase); Chicago (13
percent increase); and Miami (21 percent increase).

** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **

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