Mortgage defaults up 67% in California [View All]

[Mister K]

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?siteid=netscape&dist=netscape&guid=%7B1075F84E-0DCE-4484-B8D2-024F9E64D029%7D

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The number of defaults on mortgage payments rose to a three-year high in the second quarter in California, a 67% increase from the year earlier period, according to DataQuick, a real estate data-compiling firm.

Lenders sent 20,752 default notices to homeowners across the Golden State, up 10.5% from 18,778 the previous quarter and up 67.2% from 12,408 in the second quarter of 2005. Notices of default are formal documents filed with the county recorder's office which mark the first step of the foreclosure process.

The 20,752 defaults were the highest since 25,511 were filed in the first quarter of 2003.
"This is an important trend to watch but doesn't strike us as ominous," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick's president. "We would have to see defaults roughly double from today's level before they would begin to impact home values much."