‘Real Estate Weekly’: Baton Rouge posts lower foreclosure rate

The rate of foreclosure among properties with outstanding mortgages in the Baton Rouge metro area was lower in January than it was to open the year previous, according to a new monthly report from CoreLogic. Although the 2.16% rate in January was up slightly from the 2.12% rate in December—as well as the 2.09% rate in November and 2.12% rate in October—it was significantly lower than the 2.48% rate in January 2012. Meanwhile, the Capital Region’s mortgage delinquency rate—that is, the percentage of home loans three months or more past due—was also down to 5.36% in January, from 5.88% in the opening month of 2012. Both the local foreclosure rate and the mortgage delinquency rate were lower than the Louisiana average rates for January, which were at 2.25% and 5.8%, respectively. They were also lower than the U.S. average rates of 2.9% and 6.34%, respectively. The 2.09% foreclosure rate Baton Rouge posted in November of last year was a nearly three-year low. For historical comparison, the Capital Region foreclosure rate was 2.82% in January 2011, 2.1% in January 2010, and 1.28% in January 2009. The last time the local foreclosure rate was below 2% was December 2009, when it was at 1.98%. You can access a map of foreclosure rates by ZIP code in the Capital Region and read the rest of the new Real Estate Weekly e-newsletter here.