Total foreclosure filings up 11 percent from Q2, and up 105 percent from Q3 2008.

Wisconsin reported 11,181 properties with foreclosure filings in the third quarter of 2009, an increase of 11 percent from the previous quarter and 105 percent above the level reported in the third quarter of 2008, according to the latest RealtyTrac^® U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.

“Wisconsin foreclosures were up during the third quarter and from this time last year,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “The largest increase was in auctions, which climbed 59 percent for the year. Wisconsin’s 7.7 percent unemployment rate has been decreasing, it is still below the national average of 9.8 percent, and home sales have picked up dramatically this year. The increase we are seeing at this point is likely being driven by the overall recession.”

Wisconsin ranked 18^th in the country in total foreclosures reported for the third quarter. With one in every 229 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing, its foreclosure rate ranked 19^th among the 50 states.

Foreclosure activity in Wisconsin was up 5 percent in September from the previous month to 4,154 properties with foreclosure filings, and elevated on a yearly basis, up 169 percent from September 2008. Wisconsin’s foreclosure rate was 19^th highest in the nation for the month — with one in every 616 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing.

Rock City posts state’s top foreclosure rate in the third quarter

Rock County posted the highest county foreclosure rate in the state for the third quarter, with one in every 135 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing — 1.7 times state average. Milwaukee County was second, with one in every 141 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter — 1.6 times the state average. Third highest rate was posted by Columbia County, where one in every 142 housing units received a foreclosure filing — 1.6 times the state average.

Five counties accounted for 47 percent of foreclosure activity in the third quarter

Milwaukee County led the way, tallying 2,912 properties with foreclosure filings for the quarter. Dane County came in second highest, reporting 621 properties with foreclosure filings. Brown County came in third, tallying 610 properties with foreclosure filings. Waukesha County posted the fourth highest for the quarter, reporting 579 properties with foreclosure filings. Rock County documented 507 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

Wisconsin 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.

Wisconsin Top Foreclosure Rates by County – Q3 2009

Wisconsin Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Q3 2009

Wisconsin Top Foreclosure Rates by County – Sept 2009

Wisconsin Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Sept 2009