Los Angeles Times reporter Alejandro Lazo chats with industry experts about why foreclosures dropped so dramatically.
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
