Percentage of homes in foreclosure drops nationwide

The percentage of homes in foreclosure dropped nationwide last month, but the percentage of borrowers behind on their payments rose slightly, according to a report released Wednesday.

In sign of continued recovery in the housing market, about 3.44% of mortgages were in some stage of the foreclosure process in December, according to Lender Processing Services Inc., a mortgage and consumer loan processing firm.

That’s a nearly 2% decline from November and a roughly 18% drop off from a year earlier.

The percentage of mortgages that are 30 days or more past due stood at 7.17% last month, a 0.74% increase from November, the firm reported. Still, that rate declined 9% when compared with the same month in 2011.

The states with the highest percentages of troubled loans — both delinquent and in foreclosure — are Florida, New Jersey, Mississippi, Nevada and New York, the report said.

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andrew.khouri@latimes.com
Twitter @khouriandrew