Nevada again ranked among top states for foreclosures

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Nevada ranked among the nation’s top states for foreclosures, according to a report Wednesday.

California research firm RealtyTrac ranked Nevada No. 2 for foreclosure activity in October, with one in every 407 housing units in some phase of default. Only Florida had a higher rate, at one in every 332 units. Other states in the top five were Maryland, Ohio and Illinois.

The national foreclosure rate was one in every 978 homes.

Nevada’s high rating came even as foreclosure activity here fell 39 percent in October, after hitting a 21-month high in September.

The state’s Homeowner’s Bill of Rights took effect Oct. 1, and changes it made to foreclosure law were behind Nevada’s seesawing pace of default, RealtyTrac’s report said.

Banks reported 1,690 notices of default, or foreclosure starts, statewide in October. They repossessed 666 homes. In all, there was movement on 2,849 Nevada homes in the month. That was down 14.6 percent from October 2012.

U.S. foreclosure activity was up 2.1 percent from September to October but down 28.2 percent year over year. Nearly 60,000 properties started on the foreclosure process in October, and banks repossessed 37,775 homes in the month.

Las Vegas did not make RealtyTrac’s list of top metros for foreclosure activity. Top cities for foreclosure included Miami; Chicago; Baltimore; Tampa Bay, Fla.; and Riverside, Calif.

Contact reporter Jennifer Robison at jrobison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @J_Robison1 on Twitter.