Foreclosures in Mich. continue to increase, are up 11.25 percent over last quarter.

State's housing woes still growing
Foreclosures in Mich. continue to increase, are up 11.25 percent over last quarter.
Nathan Hurst / The Detroit News
The number of Michigan houses in foreclosure rose again in the second quarter, a sign that the region's housing woes won't be over soon.

There were 32,868 properties in foreclosure in the state in the quarter, according to data released today by RealtyTrac, a firm that tracks foreclosures nationwide. That's 11.25 percent more than the number seen in the first three months of this year, and 73.18 percent more than in the second quarter of last year.

The state's foreclosure rate of one filing for every 137 households is the seventh highest. The national rate is one in every 171 households, and represents a 121 percent increase over a year ago.

States with higher foreclosure rates than Michigan include Nevada, California, Arizona, Florida, Colorado and Ohio.

"Although much of the fallout from foreclosures is being driven by rampant activity in a few states ... most areas of the country are seeing at least some increase in foreclosure activity," said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. "Forty-eight of 50 states and 95 out of the nation's 100 largest metro areas experienced year-over-year increases in foreclosure activity in the second quarter."

Wayne County had the most properties in foreclosures in Metro Detroit during the second quarter, the RealtyTrac data shows. There were 12,825 houses in foreclosure, or one for every 66 households. That's up 3.41 percent from the first quarter of this year and 52.9 percent from the second quarter of 2007.

The foreclosure rate was the 12th highest among U.S. metropolitan areas, ranking under cities such as Las Vegas, Phoenix, Miami and San Diego. At one time, Wayne County's foreclosure rate was the highest in the country.

Other Metro Detroit counties showed increases in the second quarter, as well:

• Oakland County: 4,718 houses in foreclosure, or one for every 111 households; that's an increase of 29.01 percent over the first quarter of this year and 103.63 percent over the second quarter of last year.

• Macomb County: 3,467 properties in foreclosure, or one for every 101 households; that's an increase of 14.69 percent over the first quarter of this year and 75.72 percent over the second quarter of last year.

• Livingston County: 516 properties in foreclosure, or one for every 139 households, that's a decrease of 10.1 percent from the first quarter of this year, but an increase of 719.05 percent over the second quarter of last year.

The volume of foreclosures weighs on the region's overall housing outlook. While sales throughout the region have increased since last year, more foreclosures now means even more cut-rate properties could be coming onto the market just as employers such as Detroit's Big Three automakers begin to shed thousands of jobs.

Dana Johnson, chief economist with Comerica Bank, said that if foreclosures continue to increase, home prices will have difficulty rebounding.

"The sooner they stop," he said, "the sooner recovery can become a reality."