US Foreclosures Up 7% Month-Over-Month and 14% Year-Over-Year in May

ATTOM, the California-based curator of land, property, and real estate data, released on Thursday (6-8-23) its May US Foreclosure Market Report. The report reveals that there were 35,196 properties with foreclosure filings—default notices, scheduled auctions, or bank repossessions—in May. That is up 7% month-over-month and up 14% year-over-year.

According to ATTOM, one in every 3,967 housing units had a foreclosure filling in May. States with the highest foreclosure rates were Illinois, where one in every 2,144 units had a foreclosure filing; Maryland with one in every 2,203 housing units; New Jersey with one in every 2,257 housing units; Florida with one in every 2,470 housing units; and Ohio with one in every 2,478 housing units.

ATTOM reports that lenders started the foreclosure process on 23,245 US properties in May, up 4% month-over-month and 5% year-over-year. Lenders repossessed 4,020 properties through completed foreclosures (REOs) in May, an increase of 38% month-over-month and 41% year-over-year.

Adding additional background and his expert analysis, ATTOM’s CEO Rob Barber said:

“The recent increase in foreclosure filings nationwide indicates a trend that has been observed throughout the year, and what we have expected to occur. This upward trajectory suggests the possibility of continued heightened activity, and with foreclosure completions seeing the largest monthly increase this year, we will continue to monitor the potential impacts this may have on the housing market.”