Florida foreclosure numbers: State has highest rate of foreclosures in nation for September

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Some 167,398 Floridians who lost homes to foreclosure may each get about $2,000 as part of the nation's largest consumer financial protection settlement.
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Posted: 10/11/2012

By: Ashleigh Walters

SAINT LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. -- New numbers released overnight give a snapshot of South Florida's recovering housing market, and some neighborhoods are facing bleak news.

RealtyTrac released September and third quarter housing numbers for the nation on Thursday.

The new report puts Florida highest nationwide in state foreclosure rates, the first time the state has topped the list since April 2005.

Experts from the research firm speculate that Florida's judicial process, which takes two years to complete a foreclosure, factors in to the comparison.

Florida faced an increase of 13.5 percent increase in properties with foreclosure filings since the third quarter of 2011.

Saint Lucie County faced a surge of newly foreclosed homes in September, with an average of one in 200 homes. There was a massive 82 percent increase in the number of filings since 2011.

Experts told the Sun-Sentinel that even though foreclosures hurt the value of surrounding homes, buyers are eager for more properties to go on sale. This may mean prices will not continue to fall.