Total foreclosure filings up 11 percent from Q2, and up 60 percent from Q3 2008.

South Carolina reported 7,546 properties with foreclosure filings in the third quarter of 2009, an increase of 11 percent from the previous quarter and 60 percent above the level reported in the third quarter of 2008, according to the latest RealtyTrac^® U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.

“South Carolina foreclosures were up during the third quarter,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “The largest increase was in bank-owned properties, which climbed 47 percent for the quarter. This is not surprising since South Carolina’s unemployment rate — one of the highest in the country at 11.6 percent — is fueling foreclosure activity. It also had one of the highest declines in home sales during the past year — although this is beginning to change.”

South Carolina ranked 26^th in the country in total foreclosures reported for the third quarter. With one in every 268 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing, its foreclosure rate ranked 24^th among the 50 states.

Foreclosure activity in the Palmetto State was up 31 percent in September from the previous month to 3,231 properties with foreclosure filings, and elevated on a yearly basis, up 47 percent from September 2008. The state’s foreclosure rate was 21^st highest in the nation for the month — with one in every 626 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing.

Beaufort County posts state’s top foreclosure rate in the third quarter

Beaufort County posted the highest county foreclosure rate in South Carolina for the third quarter, with one in every 109 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing — 2.5 times the state average. Dorchester County was second, with one in every 139 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter — 1.9 times the state average. Greenville County posted the third highest foreclosure rate, where one in every 155 housing units received a foreclosure filing — 1.7 times the state average.

Five counties accounted for 59 percent of foreclosure activity in the third quarter

Greenville County led the way, tallying 1,197 properties with foreclosure filings for the quarter. Charleston County came in second highest, reporting 937 properties with foreclosure filings. Richland County came in third, tallying 851 properties with foreclosure filings. Fourth highest for the quarter was Beaufort County, reporting 747 properties with foreclosure filings. Horry County documented 703 properties with foreclosure filings, the state’s fifth highest foreclosure total in the quarter.

State contributes 1 percent to nation’s foreclosure activity for quarter and month

South Carolina accounted for 1 percent of the 937,840 properties with foreclosure filings reported nationwide for the third quarter and 1 percent of the 343,638 properties with foreclosure filings reported for September. Total U.S. activity declined 5.4 percent between the second and third quarter of the year, but was up 23 percent from the third quarter of 2008. One in every 136 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing during the quarter, the highest quarterly foreclosure rate since RealtyTrac began issuing its report in 2005.

Report methodology

The RealtyTrac Monthly U.S. Foreclosure Market Report provides a count of the total number of properties with at least one foreclosure filing reported during the month — broken out by type of filing at the county, state and national level. RealtyTrac’s report incorporates documents filed in all three phases of foreclosure: Default — Notice of Default (NOD) and Lis Pendens (LIS); Auction — Notice of Trustee Sale and Notice of Foreclosure Sale (NTS and NFS); and Real Estate Owned, or REO properties (that have been foreclosed on and repurchased by a bank). If more than one foreclosure document is filed against a property during the month — which is extremely rare — only the most recent filing is counted in the report. The report also checks if the same type of document was filed against a property in a previous month. If so, and if that previous filing occurred within the estimated foreclosure timeframe for the state the property is in, the report does not count the property in the current month.

For current news and information regarding foreclosure-related issues and trends, check out our blog at www.ForeclosurePulse.com.

South Carolina Top Foreclosure Rates by County – Q3 2009

South Carolina Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Q3 2009

South Carolina Top Foreclosure Rates by County – Sept 2009

South Carolina Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Sept 2009