November 2010 foreclosure actions down sharply in Washington

RealtyTrac, a California based company, said the numbers dropped 36 percent in Washington state. Nationally, such actions - processes ranging from an initial notice of default to actual repossession - were down 21 percent, which RealtyTrac said reflected a seasonal trend but also delays stemming from questions about the legality of some proposed foreclosures.

RealtyTrac said 4,067 properties in Washington had some sort of foreclosure action against them in November of 2010.  The national rate for November was one in every 492 properties, a 21 percent decline from October and a 14.4 percent fall from November 2009.  With regards to actual foreclosure repossessions by banks, Washington had a total of 1,427 in November.

Nationally, the number of homes taken back by lenders in November fell to 67,428 - the lowest level in 18 months - the result of freezes by several banks following allegations that evictions were handled imcorrectly.

Washington state's overall foreclosures were up 23.7 percent compared with November 2009. Realty Trace reported that Washington's foreclosure activity has gone up sharply in 2010 compared with year-earlier dates, especially in the Seattle area, indicating how the mortgage crisis has been spreading from the hardest hit states like California, Nevada, Florida and Arizona.  King County had one in every 696 properties involved in some sort of real estate foreclosure action in November.

The national rate for November was one in every 492 properties, a 21 percent decline from October and a 14.4 percent fall from November 2009.