San Diego County responsible for 7% of foreclosure filings in state

 

Fri Aug 21 2009, San Diego Daily Transcript

The Mortgage Bankers Association released a report Thursday that said about one in seven California homes was at least one payment behind on their mortgages or in foreclosure. But where are these defaults occurring?

Though San Diego has the fourth-highest amount of foreclosure filings in any county in the state, it is ranked 23rd in terms of foreclosure rate, with one in every 141 homes somewhere in the foreclosure process, according to a RealtyTrac report.

San Diego County accounted for 7.4 percent of California’s foreclosure filings in July with the city of Chula Vista racking up the largest chunk of filings in the region.

While 7.4 percent is a significant portion for only one of California’s 58 counties, it is less than half of the foreclosure filings that have occurred in Los Angeles and two-thirds the amount filed in Riverside.

The MBA survey included households with one missed payment -- data that is not public record and not taken into account by RealtyTrac’s figures.

Not all loans with one or two delinquent payments will go into the foreclosure process.

However, Mark Goldman, professor of real estate at San Diego State University, said unless the unemployment picture changes, there is a good chance the number of notices of default could increase in coming months.

Foreclosure filings include all homes that have received a notice of defalut or notice of trustee’s sale, or are bank owned.

In a San Diego County-specific report from RealtyTrac, data showed there are more foreclosures filings in North County than any other local region.

North County’s reported 2,877 notices of default, notices of trustee’s sale and foreclosures in July made up 36 percent of San Diego County’s total foreclosure filings.

Three of the five market areas with the most foreclosure filings are Escondido, Oceanside and Vista.

Foreclosures and mortgage payment delinquencies have been increasing due to the rising unemployment rate along with decreased household income, according to several industry observers.

“The main driver right now of prime delinquencies and foreclosures is the economy and unemployment,” said Dustin Hobbs, director of communications for the California Mortgage Bankers Association.

He said Californians should expect the number of foreclosure filings and payment delinquencies to continue.

“Until when? The answer to that is when the economy turns around and businesses start hiring again, that’s when you’ll see a genuine stabilization of home values,” he said.

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Market areas with the most foreclosure filings in San Diego County:

Source: RealtyTrac July 2009 San Diego County ZIP code statistics

1. Chula Vista -- 914
2. Escondido -- 566
3. Oceanside -- 535
4. El Cajon -- 437
5. Vista -- 316

Counties with the most foreclosure filings in California: Source: RealtyTrac

1. Los Angeles -- 22,540
2. Riverside -- 12,044
3. San Bernadino -- 9,456
4. San Diego -- 8,031
5. Orange -- 7,286