Foreclosures Up 26 Percent

IRVINE, Calif. – (By Dale King, Realty News Report) – The task of searching for and buying a new home is often fraught with obstacles. High prices and rising mortgage rates normally top that list.

But homeownership is not without dark clouds. While folks who own their residences outright enjoy a certain level of stability, mortgagees must attend to their finances with caution to avoid the possibility of foreclosure.

And foreclosures – filings and completed transactions – do happen. A new report released Thursday by ATTOM, a provider of property data, AI-powered analytics and real estate intelligence, says the number of foreclosure filings and completions spiked a bit in the first quarter of 2026, but rose considerably more during the past year.

The document, titled “Q1 2026 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report,” shows that a total of 118,727 U.S. properties had a foreclosure filing during the first quarter of 2026, a hike of 6% from the previous quarter and an increase of 26% from a year ago.

Bank repossessions have also climbed 45% year over year, states the ATTOM analysis.

“Foreclosure activity increased in the first quarter, with both starts and completed foreclosures posting solid year-over-year gains,” said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM. “While volumes remain below historical peaks, the continued rise, especially in starts and bank repossessions, suggests financial pressure may be building for some homeowners and could signal shifting housing market dynamics.”

The report notes that the increase in foreclosure activity may indicate the real estate market is continuing to normalize.

Texas tops foreclosure starts

A total of 82,631 U.S. properties started the foreclosure process in the first quarter of 2026, up 7% from the previous quarter and 20% more than a year ago.

Texas had the largest number of foreclosure starts during Q1 2026 – 10,617. Second largest was Florida (10,099 foreclosure starts); California (7,985 starts); Georgia (4,356 starts); and New York (3,886 starts).

In addition, two major metros in Texas with a population of 200,000 or more found themselves among communities with the largest number of foreclosure starts during the first quarter of 2026: Houston, 3,614 and Dallas, 2,427. Also on that list were New York (3,868); Chicago (3,401) and Atlanta, 2,520 foreclosure starts.

Overall, Texas did fairly well in the foreclosure department, ranking 12^th among all 50 states for property seizure efforts.

Worst foreclosure rates

Nationwide, one in every 1,211 housing units faced a foreclosure filing in Q1 2026. States with the worst rates were Indiana (one in every 739 housing units); South Carolina (one in every 743 housing units); Florida (one in every 750 units); Delaware (one in every 757 units); and Illinois (one in every 833 units).

Among 227 metropolitan statistical areas with a population of at least 200,000, those with the worst foreclosure rates in Q1 2026 were Lakeland, Fla. (one in every 409 housing units); Punta Gorda, Fla. (one in 416); Columbia, S.C. (one in 440); Fayetteville, N.C. (one in 480) and Macon, Ga., one in 492.

Bank repossessions spike 45%

Lenders repossessed 14,020 U.S. properties through foreclosure (REO) in Q1 2026, up 2% from the previous quarter and up 45% from a year ago.

Among states with 100 or more REOs in Q1 2026, those with the biggest annual increases were Colorado (from 99 REOs in Q1 2025 to 321 REOs in Q1 2026); Alabama (increase from 153 to 355); Washington (increase from 104 to 224); Oregon (increase from 80 to 170) and Florida, an increase from 487 to 1,014.

Average foreclosure timelines down 14%

Properties foreclosed in Q1 2026 had been in the foreclosure process for an average of 577 days, down 3% percent from the previous quarter and 14% from the same time last year, marking six consecutive quarters of decline.

States with the longest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q1 2026 were Louisiana (3,140 days); Hawaii (2,119 days); New York (1,911 days); Connecticut (1,686 days) and Nevada (1,422 days).

States with the shortest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q1 2026 were Texas (165 days); West Virginia (178 days); Alaska (192 days); Wyoming (193 days) and Rhode Island (219 days).

March 2026 foreclosure takeaways

Nationwide in March 2026, one in every 3,131 properties had a foreclosure filing.
States with the worst foreclosure rates in March 2026 were South Carolina (one in every 1,996 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Indiana (one in every 2,122 housing units); Florida (one in every 2,124 housing units); Illinois (one in every 2,238 housing units); and New Jersey (one in every 2,266 housing units).
30,334 U.S. properties entered the foreclosure process in March 2026, up 17% from the prior month and up 21% from March 2025.
Lenders completed the foreclosure process on 5,229 U.S. properties in March 2026, up 28% from the month before.

Mark Your Calendar: Commgate’s annual Developer Showcase will be held April 29 from 4:30 to 7:00 PM at the Houston Country Club. The Commgate event will provide Houston’s brokerage community an overview of significant Houston area commercial real estate developments in a small-scale trade show format. For more information: www.Commgate.com

THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT PODCAST

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Mike Spears of Lee & Associates Houston

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Bob Parsley of Colliers Houston

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Mark Davis of Davis Commercial

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with David Hightower of Midway

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Alex Kamkar of Bold Fox Development

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Brad McWhirter of Trahan Architects

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Lacee Jacobs of Rebel Retail Advisors

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Danny Rice of Colliers

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Trey Odom of Avera

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Kris Larson of Downtown Houston +

LISTEN: THE RALPH BIVINS PROJECT with Jim Carman of Howard Hughes Holdings