Tampa metro area foreclosures fall 14 percent
By Yvette C. Hammett | Tribune Staff
Tampa Tribune
Published: Sep 10, 2014

The foreclosure rate in Florida remains well above the national rate, having actually increased 24 percent in August over a year ago, according to RealtyTrac, which compiles national housing data. One in every 400 houses had some form of foreclosure paperwork filed in August.

The Tampa metro area is second only to Miami in foreclosure filings for August, with one in every 407 houses having filed foreclosure paperwork. That is actually down 14.4 percent over August 2013. In comparison, the Miami metro area had one in every 359 houses filing foreclosure papers in August.

In this region, Pasco County is in the worse shape, with one in every 300 houses filing foreclosure paperwork in August, up 15.63 percent year over year. Hernando County showed one in every 332 houses with a foreclosure start in August, down 17.26 percent over 2013.

In Hillsborough County, one in every 423 houses filed for foreclosure in August, up 1.68 percent year over year. Pinellas County had one in every 486 houses filing foreclosure paperwork in August, down 37.82 percent year over year, according to RealtyTrac.

Nationally, more than 55,000 properties started the foreclosure process in August, up 12 percent from the previous month and flat from a year ago, RealtyTrac reports. August was the second consecutive month where U.S. foreclosure starts have increased on a month-over-month basis.