Real estate market rebounding [Google+ Hangout]

Foreclosures started in California have dropped to the lowest level since early 2007, the latest sign that the housing market is rebounding faster than analysts expected.

Join us for a live video chat on the state of real estate in California and the nation at 3 p.m. PDT with Times real estate editor Nancy Rivera Brooks and consumer columnist David Lazarus. We invite you to join in on the conversation by posting comments and questions below.

LIVE VIDEO DISCUSSION: Join us at 3 p.m. today

Notices of default fell 10.2% from the previous quarter and were down 31.2% from the same period last year, San Diego-based DataQuick reported Wednesday. A total of 49,026 notices of default – the first stage of foreclosure in California -- were filed on homes here last quarter.

That was the lowest number since the first quarter of 2007, and a 63% decline from the first quarter of 2009, when notice of default filings peaked in the state.

Another report Wednesday found that U.S. housing starts increased 15% in September.

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