Foreclosure rates up from second quarter

Third-quarter foreclosure rates in Will County were higher than the second quarter and compared to last year.

The number of foreclosure filings -- which include default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions -- totaled 2,896 from July through September, according to Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac. That's 39.36 percent higher than the second quarter and 49.43 percent higher than the same time period a year ago.

From August to September, the county's filings dropped 11.05 percent, from 1,131 to 1,006. But the September total was up almost 50 percent from 671 in September 2008.

In Grundy and Kendall counties, the statistics were mixed.

Third quarter filings in Grundy County totaled 79, up 507 percent from the second quarter, but down 35.77 percent from a year ago. September filings totaled 37, the same as August and 26 percent less than in September 2008.

In Kendall County, third quarter filings totaled 769, down 1.28 percent from the second quarter but up 692.78 percent from a year ago. September filings totaled 306, up 33.04 percent from August and up 247.73 percent from September 2008.

In Illinois, third quarter foreclosure filings totaled 37,270, 13.68 percent higher than the second quarter and 30.29 percent higher than a year ago. Illinois has the fifth highest total in the nation.

Nationwide, foreclosure filings were reported on 937,840 properties in the third quarter, a 5 percent increase from the previous quarter and an increase of nearly 23 percent from the third quarter of 2008. One in every 136 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing during the quarter -- the highest quarterly foreclosure rate since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in the first quarter of 2005, according to a company press release.

Foreclosure filings were reported on 343,638 properties in September, a 4 percent decrease from the previous month but a 29 percent increase from September 2008.

Despite the monthly decrease, September's total was still the third highest monthly total since the RealtyTrac report began in January 2005, behind only July and August of this year, company officials said.

The number may be up because "... lenders may be starting to work through some of the pent-up foreclosure inventory caused by legislative delays, loan modification efforts and high volumes of distressed properties," said RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio.