Second Chance for Foreclosed Home Owners

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The Federal Housing Administration is giving some former home owners another shot at home ownership. The FHA sent a letter to mortgage lenders stating that it would offer mortgage insurance to borrowers who once filed for bankruptcy, or who lost their homes through foreclosure or short sale during the recession.

Still, potential borrowers must show they can meet all other FHA requirements and that they are no longer financially constrained. Borrowers also will have to undergo housing counseling and FHA is requiring lenders to verify that at least a year has passed since the foreclosure or “economic event” that caused the foreclosure or bankruptcy.

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Surprising Foreclosure Hot Spots

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While housing markets across the country are recovering from the deepest throes of the foreclosure crisis, others are just stumbling into it — and they aren’t exactly the places you’d expect.

States like Maryland, Oregon and New Jersey, which maintained relatively stable markets after the housing bubble popped, saw new foreclosure filings climb by double- and triple-digit percentages in July, according to RealtyTrac.

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Foreclosures Fall to Pre-Housing Bust Levels

Graph - down

The long national foreclosure nightmare is nearing its end, with foreclosure filings hitting their lowest level since before the housing bust.

Total foreclosure filings, including notices of default, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, dropped to 127,790 in June, down 35% over the past 12 months, according to RealtyTrac. Overall, filings have hit their lowest monthly level since December 2006.

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Foreclosure Activity Back on the Rise

Foreclosure filings—which include default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions—increased 2 percent in May, rising from a 75-month low in April, according to the latest foreclosure report from RealtyTrac. Still, foreclosure filings are down 28 percent from a year ago.

The May increase was largely attributed to an 11 percent increase in bank repossessions. Foreclosure starts also ticked up 4 percent in May over last month, with 26 states posting increases, according to the report.

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