Good news for homeowners: Foreclosure threat in Manatee-Sarasota continues to ease

As housing prices continue to climb and the unemployment rate continues to fall, the number of homeowners in the Manatee-Sarasota region in danger of falling into foreclosure remains on the decline.

According to the latest Loan Performance Insights report from data provider CoreLogic, which was released Tuesday, 0.8 percent of homes in the two-county area were in foreclosure in August, the sixth consecutive month that figure came in at less than 1 percent.

That was below the statewide rate of 1.1 percent and a healthy drop from the region’s rate in August 2016 of 1.2 percent. The nationwide foreclosure rate was 0.6 percent in August, its lowest level since July 2007, a year-over-year decline from 0.9 percent and well off the peak of 3.6 percent in December 2010.

“Serious delinquency and foreclosure rates are at their lowest levels in more than a decade, signaling the final stages of recovery in the U.S. housing market,” CoreLogic president at CEO Frank Martell said in Tuesday’s report.

“As the construction and mortgage industries move forward, there needs to be not only a ramp up in homebuilding, but also a focus on maintaining prudent underwriting practices to avoid repeating past mistakes.”

Meanwhile, the number of delinquent mortgages in Manatee-Sarasota is lower than the statewide and nationwide rates. Locally, 3.4 percent of mortgages were at least 30 days late in August, compared with 5.3 percent across Florida and 4.6 percent throughout the U.S.

Not to be overlooked: The two-county numbers again declined month-over-month (3.5 percent in July) and year-over-year (4.1 percent in August 2016).

The serious delinquency rate – loans that are 90 days or more late – was 1.7 percent in August in Manatee-Sarasota, the same as a month earlier but down from 2.4 percent at the same time last year.

Even though delinquency and foreclosure rates are lower in most markets compared to a year ago, there are worrying trends across the country, CoreLogic chief economist Frank Nothaft said. Specifically, Nothaft said, in oil-centric regions, including Alaska and Texas.

“The effect of the drop in crude oil prices since 2014 has taken a toll on mortgage loan performance in some markets,” Nothaft said. “Crude oil prices this August were less than half their level three years ago and led to oil-related layoffs and an increase in loan delinquency rates.”

This story was originally published November 14, 2017 at 9:57 AM with the headline "Good news for homeowners: Foreclosure threat in Manatee-Sarasota continues to ease."