LOS ANGELES — The number of U.S. homes repossessed by lenders fell last month by the sharpest margin this year as several major lenders temporarily halted most or all of their foreclosures amid allegations that thousands of foreclosures were handled improperly.
Home repossessions dropped 9 percent from September to October, foreclosure-listing firm RealtyTrac said early today.
The decline represents the first significant hitch in a foreclosure steamroller that has had lenders on pace to seize more than 1 million homes this year.
Colorado ranked 10th for foreclosure activity in October. Foreclosure filings were running nearly 14 percent higher compared with October a year earlier but were down by 4.6 percent from September.
In recent weeks, some lenders that had suspended taking action against borrowers severely behind in payments have announced plans to resume doing so, though at a more measured pace, in an attempt to ensure there aren’t any flaws in the process.
“We will still see some softness in the numbers in November, just because of the lag time from when you announce something like this and when you can actually enact it and then reverse it,” said Rick Sharga, a senior vice president at RealtyTrac.
