Total foreclosure filings up 21 percent from Q2; Up 99 percent from Q3 2008.

Louisiana reported 3,986 properties with foreclosure filings in the third quarter of 2009, an increase of 21 percent from the previous quarter and 99 percent above the level reported in the third quarter of 2008, according to the latest RealtyTrac^® U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. 

Foreclosure activity in Louisiana was up 1 percent in September from the previous month to 1,649 properties with foreclosure filings and up 248 percent from September 2008.

“Foreclosure activity rose substantially in Louisiana in the third quarter of 2009, bring it to double the level reported for this time last year,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “While bank repossessions for a number of properties in peril were held off for the first half of 2009 because of the federal foreclosure prevention program, many of these homes were finally processed as foreclosures in recent months.”

One in every 466 Louisiana housing units received a foreclosure filing during the third quarter, ranking 37^th among the 50 states.

Orleans Parish posts state’s top foreclosure rate in the third quarter

Orleans Parish posted the highest foreclosure rate in the state for the third quarter, with one in every 178 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing — 2.6 times the state average. Saint Tammany Parish had the second highest foreclosure rate, with one in every 179 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter — 2.6 times the state average. Livingston Parish posted the third highest foreclosure rate, where one in every 193 housing units received a foreclosure filing — 2.4 times the state average.

Orleans Parish leads state in foreclosure activity in the third quarter

Orleans Parish also led the state in foreclosure activity, reporting 629 properties with foreclosure filings for the quarter. Jefferson Parish had the second highest foreclosure activity, reporting 610 properties with foreclosure filings. Saint Tammany Parish came in third, tallying 528 properties with foreclosure filings. East Baton Rouge Parish posted the fourth highest foreclosure activity for the quarter, reporting 521 properties with foreclosure filings. Caddo Parish documented 306 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

Louisiana 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.

Louisiana Top Foreclosure Rates By Parish – Q3 2009

Louisiana Top Foreclosure Totals by Parish – Q3 2009

Louisiana Top Foreclosure Rates By Parish – Sept 2009

Louisiana Top Foreclosure Totals by Parish – Sept 2009