Total foreclosure filings up 94 percent from Q2; Down 7 percent from Q3 2008.

Montana reported 293 properties with foreclosure filings in the third quarter of 2009, an increase of 94 percent from the previous quarter, but still 7 percent below the level reported in the third quarter of 2008, according to the latest RealtyTrac^® U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. 

Foreclosure activity in Montana was up 9 percent in September from the previous month to 109 properties with foreclosure filings and up 160 percent from September 2008.

“Montana foreclosure filings rose sharply in the third quarter of 2009, while activity remained below the level reported for this time last year,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “Unemployment in Montana is 6.7 percent, though the number of new job seekers is quickly rising faster than jobs can be added.”

One in every 1,486 Montana housing units received a foreclosure filing during the third quarter, ranking 47^th among the 50 states.

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

Mineral County posted the highest county foreclosure rate in the state for the third quarter, with one in every 198 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing — 7.5 times the state average. Flathead County came in second, with one in every 402 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter — 3.7 times the state average. Ravalli County posted the third highest foreclosure rate, where one in every 499 housing units received a foreclosure filing — three times the state average.

Flathead County leads state in foreclosure activity in the third quarter

Flathead County led the state, reporting 94 properties with foreclosure filings for the quarter. Gallatin County had the second highest total, reporting 40 properties with foreclosure filings. Ravalli County came in third, tallying 33 properties with foreclosure filings. Cascade County posted the fourth highest foreclosure activity for the quarter, reporting 32 properties with foreclosure filings. Missoula County documented 27 properties with foreclosure filings, the state’s fifth highest foreclosure total in the quarter.

State a minor contributor to nation’s foreclosure activity for quarter and month

Montana accounted for less than 1 percent of the 937,840 properties with foreclosure filings reported nationwide for the third quarter and less than 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.

Montana Top Foreclosure Rates By County – Q3 2009

Montana Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Q3 2009

Montana Top Foreclosure Rates By County – Sept 2009

Montana Top Foreclosure Totals by County – Sept 2009