3 States With the Highest Numbers of Foreclosures in February
A monthly report from ATTOM says that Delaware, Nevada, and Illinois had the highest foreclosure rates in the nation in February.
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More homeowners nationwide faced foreclosures in February compared with the month before—and three states stood out for having the highest rates of mortgage defaults.
The February 2025 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report from ATTOM Data Solutions, a curator of land, property data, and real estate analytics, has revealed that Delaware, Illinois, and Nevada led the nation last month with the highest numbers of foreclosures, which far outpaced the national rate.
Delaware earned the dubious honor of having the nation’s top foreclosure rate, with 1 in every 2,278 housing units slapped with a foreclosure filing. No. 2 on the list, Illinois had a foreclosure rate in February of 1 in every 2,333 units, followed by Nevada in third place, with 1 in every 2,435 units.
For comparison, looking at national figures during the same period, 1 in every 4,395 homes, for a total of 32,383 properties, faced the threat of foreclosure in the form of default notices, scheduled auctions, or bank repossessions. That number represents a 5% increase from January, but a 1.7% tickdown from February 2024.
“February’s rise in foreclosure filings suggests evolving market pressures,” Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM, said in a statement. “While some increase may reflect seasonal trends, the uptick in foreclosure starts both month-over-month and year-over-year signals potential shifts.”
Besides Delaware, Illinois, and Nevada, two other states distinguished themselves for having foreclosure filing rates significantly higher than the national rate: New Jersey (1 in every 2,695 housing units) and South Carolina (1 in every 2,816 housing units).
(Realtor.com)
One silver lining for homeowners was that lenders repossessed fewer properties in February compared with the same time a year ago.
Just over 3,030 homes were clawed back by banks last month through completed foreclosures, up just under 2% from the previous month, but down 11% from February 2024.
States with at least 50 repossessions that saw the most dramatic year-over-year declines in foreclosure completions included New York (-49%); South Carolina (-44%), and New Jersey (-43%).
“We’ll continue monitoring how economic factors influence foreclosure activity moving forward,” Barber said.
The metros with the highest foreclosure rates
Among the nation’s major metros with a population greater than 200,000, Modesto, CA, had the highest foreclosure rate in February (1 in every 1,486 housing units with a foreclosure filing), followed by Lakeland, FL (1 in every 1,863 housing units); Columbia, SC (1 in every 2,006 housing units); Chicago (1 in every 2,007 housing units); and Atlantic City, NJ (1 in every 2,032 housing units).
The study also broke down the highest foreclosure rates in U.S. metros with a population greater than 1 million people.
Las Vegas topped the list with 1 in every 2,044 housing units facing foreclosure. Riverside, CA, ranked No. 2 (1 in every 2,166 housing units), followed by Philadelphia in third place (1 in every 2,195 housing units) and Jacksonville, FL (1 in every 2,445 housing units), in fourth. Chicago rounded out the top five on this list, too.
Notably, ATTOM’s latest Special Housing Risk Report released in early March found that Chicago was among the biggest markets facing the highest risk of a housing downturn based on a variety of economic factors, including foreclosures, gaps in affordability, underwater mortgages, and unemployment.
(Realtor.com)
Foreclosure starts surge monthly and annually
ATTOM’s monthly report had more bad news in store for homeowners, namely, that in February, lenders initiated the foreclosure process on 22,730 properties nationwide, representing an 8% jump from the previous month and 1% from a year ago.
New Jersey saw the greatest monthly surge in foreclosure starts, with a staggering 78% increase from January, followed by Colorado with 58% and Iowa with 57%.
Georgia and South Carolina rounded out the top five states that had 100 or more foreclosure starts and saw the sharpest monthly increases, at 42% and 29%, respectively.
Zooming in on large metros, ATTOM economists found that New York City topped the list of markets with at least 200,000 inhabitants that had the most foreclosure starts, at 1,387, followed by Chicago (1,367 starts), Houston (1,050 starts), Philadelphia (743 starts), and Dallas (651 starts).
