Foreclosures Fall to Lowest Level in Nearly 3 Years

Bank seizures of U.S. homes fell to their lowest level in nearly three years in November and fewer first-time default notices were sent to homeowners, a report by RealtyTrac said on Thursday.

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Banks repossessed 56,124 homes in November, down 17 percent from October's 67,624 and the lowest level since March 2008. They were also down nearly 17 percent from November 2010.

Default notices were filed on 71,730 properties, down 7.7 percent from 77,733 the previous month and 9.2 percent lower than a year ago.

The decrease was in line with seasonal factors generally seen at this time of year as lenders slow activity heading into the holiday season, said RealtyTrac Chief Executive Jim Saccacio.

Foreclosure auctions were scheduled on 96,540 homes, up 13.1 percent from 85,321 in October. The gain correlates to an increase in default notices that began in August and shows the homes are being worked through the system, Saccacio said.

Nevada had the country's highest foreclosure rate for the 59th consecutive month. One in every 175 homes in Nevada had a foreclosure filing in November. Of metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rates, nine of the top 10 were in California. The only exception was Las Vegas, which ranked sixth.

Stockton, California, held the top spot for the second month in a row. Overall, foreclosure activity was initiated on 224,394 properties last month, down 2.7 percent from 230,678 in October and down 14.5 percent from 262,339 a year earlier.

"We're still in that holding pattern where we're processing a fair amount of foreclosures, there still is shadow inventory out there that we have to contend with and there is uncertainty with the attorney-general settlements that is keeping us in this holding pattern," said Saccacio.