It’s time for our detailed look at December foreclosure stats in King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties. First up, the Notice of Trustee Sale summary:
December 2014
King: 322 NTS, down 36% YOY
Snohomish: 195 NTS, down 27% YOY
Pierce: 298 NTS, down 21% YOY
The number of trustee sale notices was down big yet again both from last year, but edged up slightly from the previous month. Here’s the chart of foreclosures per business day. King and Pierce both increased month-over-month even after adjusting for business days, but Snohomish fell slightly:
Here’s how the latest month’s weekday rate of foreclosures in each county compares to the 2000-2007 average and the highest level that was reached during the housing bust.
Daily Rate of Foreclosures
| County | Latest | YOY | ’00-’07 | Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| King | 14.6 | -39% | 13.4 | 73.4 |
| Snohomish | 8.9 | -30% | 7.0 | 37.1 |
| Pierce | 13.5 | -24% | 11.2 | 47.7 |
All three counties continue to drop double digits from last year’s levels.
Since all of 2014 is now in the books, let’s also take a look at annual stats for the three counties. Here’s how 2014 compared to recent years:
In 2014 all three counties saw their smallest level of foreclosure notices since 2007—the year home prices peaked in the Seattle area. Year-over-year, the annual total of foreclosures notices was down 41% in King County, down 38% in Snohomish County, and down 44% in Pierce County.
We didn’t quite get down to the same level that we saw in the years during the housing bubble, but we’re awfully close. 2015 seems likely to be the year foreclosure levels return to their pre-bust levels.
Here’s a look at foreclosure notices and completions (trustee deeds) in just King County:
Trustee deeds in King County fell 34% between 2013 and 2014.
Here’s your interactive Tableau dashboard updated with the latest foreclosure data:
The percentage of households in the chart above is determined using OFM population estimates and household sizes from the 2000 Census. King County came in at 1 NTS per 2,598 households, Snohomish County had 1 NTS per 1,430 households, and Pierce had 1 NTS for every 1,064 households (higher is better).
According to foreclosure tracking company RealtyTrac, Washington’s statewide foreclosure rate for May of one foreclosure for every 1,530 housing units was 22nd highest among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Note that RealtyTrac’s definition of “in foreclosure” is much broader than what we are using, and includes Notice of Default, Lis Pendens, Notice of Trustee Sale, and Real Estate Owned.
Hit the jump for a larger version of the chart that shows the percentage of households in each county receiving a foreclosure notice each month:
Note: The graphs above are derived from monthly Notice of Trustee Sale counts gathered at King, Snohomish, and Pierce County records. For a longer-term picture of King County foreclosures back to 1979, hit this chart and drag the date slider to its full range. For the full legal definition of what a Notice of Trustee Sale is and how it fits into the foreclosure process, check out RCW 61.24.040. The short version is that it is the notice sent to delinquent borrowers that their home will be repossessed in 90 days.