Drew Harwell | Tampa Bay Times |
“Tampa Bay saw 20 percent fewer foreclosure filings last month than in January 2013, a sign that lingering distress from the housing crash continues to slowly fade from view, RealtyTrac data released today show.
But the good news ends there. Tampa Bay posted the seventh-highest foreclosure rate in the country last month, with twice as many filings — notices of default, auction or repossession — as Phoenix, Dallas or Detroit.
One in 389 housing units here last month received a foreclosure filing, data show, and about 1,200 bay area housing units were pulled into the first step of foreclosure. An additional 1,000 homes were sold in foreclosure auctions or taken back by the bank.
Florida saw 13 percent fewer foreclosure filings last month than in January 2013, the sixth straight month of decreases since the state enacted its “faster foreclosures” law in July.
Yet even with climbing prices here allowing underwater homeowners to resurface, Florida has yet to cede its foreclosure throne. The Sunshine State once again posted the nation’s highest foreclosure rate, with one in every 346 housing units in distress.”