Riverside County: Number-Two In California For Foreclosures

Roughly 5 percent of Riverside County households were in some stage of foreclosure in the first half of the year, putting the county at No. 2 in statewide foreclosure activity, a real estate tracking firm reported today.

A total 35,099 mortgage default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions were recorded countywide between January and June, according to Irvine-based RealtyTrac.

The volume of loan defaults translated to 1 in 22 households in foreclosure, figures showed. Stanislaus County had the same ratio, but was placed at No. 1 because its percentage of defaulting households was a fraction higher than Riverside’s.

Merced County ranked No. 3, followed by San Joaquin County and San Bernardino County at No. 5.

Riverside County’s foreclosure activity dropped nearly 18.5 percent compared to the last half of 2009 and fell 23 percent from a year ago, according to RealtyTrac.

Nationally, some 1.96 million properties had foreclosure filings, data indicated.

“The midyear numbers put us on pace to exceed 3 million properties with foreclosure filings by the end of the year, and more than 1 million bank repossessions,” said RealtyTrac CEO James J. Saccacio.

“The roller-coaster pattern of foreclosure activity over the past 12 months demonstrates that while the foreclosure problem is being managed on the surface, a massive number of distressed properties and underwater loans continues to sit just below the surface, threatening the fragile stability of the housing market,” he said.

California ranked No. 4 in nationwide foreclosure activity, with 340,740 filings in the first half of the year — 15 percent lower than the last half of 2009 and 13 percent less than the same period one year ago, according to RealtyTrac.

Nevada was No. 1, followed by Arizona and Florida, with Utah just behind California at No. 5.