Florida tops United States in loans in foreclosure: report

 

More than 14 percent of loans in Florida were in foreclosure at the end of the third quarter, the highest rate in the United States, according to a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Just under 19 percent of those loans were "seriously delinquent," that is, more than 90 days delinquent. The non-seasonally adjusted foreclosure inventory rate for all loans in America last quarter was 4.43 percent, which was unchanged from the previous quarter and four basis points higher than the third quarter of 2010. The MBA's report looked at 43.5 million first-lien mortgages on one-to-four unit residential properties in the country. Nationwide, the rate of foreclosure starts was up 1.08 percent in the third quarter, a 12-basis point increase from the second quarter. -- Alexander Britell