Joe Wilson's Silicon Valley Real Estate Blog

Mortgage News Daily, October 23, 2008

Home foreclosures fell 12% in September as state legislatures have begun to pass laws to stem mortgage defaults, according to RealtyTrac's U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.

"Much of the 12% decrease in September can be attributed to change in state laws that have at least temporarily slowed down the pace at which lenders are moving forward with foreclosures," said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac.

RealtyTrac noted the foreclosure rate has begun to slow as several states have passed legislation to allow homeowners in distress additional time before foreclosure proceedings are initiated.

"In September, we saw California Notice of Defaults (NOD) drop 51% from the previous month, and that the drop has had a significant impact on the national numbers given that California accounts for close to one-third of the nation's activity foreclosure each month," Saccacio said.