Foreclosures hit an all time record in the first half of 2007, according to Bloomberg. Since the beginning of the year 926,000 foreclosures have been filed, 56% more than a year earlier.

California and Florida felt the pinch last month, as well as Ohio and Michigan. Bloomberg says home prices have fallen as much as 25% in California and Florida.

The jump in 30-year mortgage rates by more than a half a percentage point since May is putting a crimp on borrowers with the best credit just as a crackdown in subprime lending standards limits the pool of qualified buyers. Foreclosures also are increasing as the supply of unsold homes hit a record 4.43 million in May, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Foreclosure rates in “most states remained substantially above last year’s levels,” RealtyTrac Chief Executive Officer James Saccacio said in a statement.

In June, defaults surged 87 percent to 164,644 from a year ago, said RealtyTrac, a seller of foreclosure data, in the statement today. Last month’s total was 7 percent lower than in May. California, Florida, Ohio and Michigan accounted for half the national total in June.

Nevada again leads the nation in rate of foreclosure, with one foreclosure for every 175 households.

U.S. Foreclosure Filings Jump to Record in First Half (Update3) [Bloomberg]
(Photo:Drewski2112)

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