Foreclosures dip in Louisiana, but many in US still in trouble

Foreclosures fell last month in Louisiana, but the vast majority of homeowners in trouble still either lost their residences or received an auction notice.

Foreclosure-related activity fell last month in Louisiana, but the vast majority of homeowners in trouble still either lost their residences or received an auction notice, according to a report released Thursday.

Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac, which tracks foreclosures nationwide said that in August, there were 1,559 foreclosure notices issued in Louisiana. Those range from an initial notice of default to an actual repossession.

However, 947 of the actions were a final sale notice, while lenders took back 422 properties. In July, 715 repossessions in Louisiana took place. Another 1,178 homeowners received a sale notice.

RealtyTrac said lenders nationwide seem to be rolling delinquent homeowners into the process at a slower rate — perhaps to prevent further dips in home prices.

Louisiana's foreclosure rate was 39th in the United States. One in every 1,208 properties received a foreclosure-rated notice in August.

Among states, Nevada posted the highest foreclosure rate last month, followed by Florida, Arizona, California, Idaho, Utah, Georgia, Michigan, Illinois and Hawaii.