Orlando remains foreclosures 'hot spot' By Mary Shanklin Orlando Sentinel 08-13-09

Orlando remains foreclosures 'hot spot'
By Mary Shanklin
Orlando Sentinel
August 13, 2009

Orlando's pool of foreclosures swelled in July, and yet the city dropped in a nationwide ranking of foreclosure-prone metro areas because other cities were hit even harder, according to a report released today by the research firm RealtyTrac Inc.

While the number of foreclosure actions in the four-country metro area grew 8 percent from June to July, Orlando ranked 15th out of more than 200 metropolitan areas across the country. In June it had ranked 14th — and in May, eighth.

Florida dropped from third place among U.S. states in June to fourth in July, according to the monthly report compiled by California-based RealtyTrac. Florida continued to trail Nevada and California and has now fallen behind Arizona as a center for foreclosure activity.

"Although Orlando — and Florida — still have a high foreclosure rate, it's not as high as it was," said Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac spokesman. " ... Many areas of Florida are still foreclosure hot spots, and I would put Orlando in that category. It's consistently in the top 20 nationwide. ... There are areas that are worse, if that's any consolation."

Compared with a year ago, Orlando experienced a 37 percent increase last month in foreclosure-related legal filings, which can include notices of mortgage defaults and notices of pending auctions. The number of filings totaled 7,248.

Other Florida cities in the nationwide ranking ranged from Fort Myers (fourth) to Gainesville (66th).

Within Metro Orlando, Orange County had the highest proportion of foreclosure actions, with one of every 109 households affected by a filing. In contrast, Seminole County's rate was one of every 152 households.