Foreclosure filings jump in Louisiana in 2010

A total of 15,753 properties received some type of foreclosure filing in Louisiana in 2010, more than doubling the total from two years ago, a national tracking firm said Thursday.

Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac said those notices ranged from an initial notice of default to outright seizure and sale by a lending institution. That total jumped 34 percent from 2009 and 120 percent from 2008.

Still, the number is below the national average and far beyond the foreclosure hotbeds of California, Florida, Arizona, Illinois and Michigan that accounted for half of 3.82 million foreclosure filings nationwide last year, RealtyTrac said.

Nationally, one in every 45 housing units received a filing last year. In Louisiana, one in every 120 housing units was targeted, ranking the state 38th in the nation.

But RealtyTrac chief executive James Saccacio said last year’s national record would have been even higher if some lending institutions had not stopped foreclosure proceedings because of legal questions.

“Many of the foreclosure proceedings that were stopped in late 2010, which we estimate to be as high as a quarter million, will likely be restarted in and add to the numbers in early 2011,” Saccacio said.

Foreclosure filings dropped 26 percent nationwide last month as compared with December 2009 and 1.75 percent from November 2010. However, in Louisiana, the tally accelerated by 13 percent from December 2009 and 25 percent from November 2010.

Of the 1,778 actions in Louisiana last month, 473 properties were seized, while the owners of another 1,097 received a final sale notice. Those notices affected one in every 1,059 properties, ranking Louisiana 28th in the United States.

During the fourth quarter, there were 4,761 foreclosure filings in Louisiana, including 1,319 seizures and sales and 2,798 final sale notices, RealtyTrac said.

That was up 16.4 percent from the fourth quarter of 2009, but down 9.6 percent from the third quarter of 2010.