The latest foreclosures numbers have been released by various foreclosure reporting agencies.  According to most of the reports second quarter foreclosure filings have increased since the same period one year ago.

In an article published by Bloomberg.com on July 25, 2008, RealtyTrac, a reporting agency located in Irvine, California specifically stated foreclosures had increased more than 120% during that period.  The article titled, “U.S Foreclosures Double as House Prices Decline,” by author Bob Ivry, also stated that while foreclosure may have doubled from 2007, there was only a 14 percent increase in foreclosures from the first quarter of 2008. There is also no mention of the recent decrease in foreclosures from May to June.

The article quotes RealtyTrac as stating that “almost 740,000 properties were in some stage of foreclosure,” but does not state the time period they are referencing.  There are many different time periods where the article uses comparative figures.  The 740,000 properties could represent current foreclosures, second quarter foreclosures or foreclosures for one year.

ForeclosureS.com, a reporting agency located in Sacramento, California offers a statistical foreclosure page, which can be accessed on their “press inquiry” page.  On this page, ForeclosureS.com reported a significantly lower increase with an 87 percent increase in foreclosures in the second quarter over the same period in 2007.  While still a telling increase, the foreclosure reports still dramatically differ.

However, there is one commonality between the figures from both foreclosure reporting agencies. Both companies reported an increase in foreclosure filings.  Foreclosure filings include the initial notice of a default in mortgage payments.  Many times homeowners recover from their missed payments and foreclosure is averted.  With the filings taken into consideration, the actual foreclosures are dramatically lower.  Between differing foreclosure figures and confusing press reporting readers are bombarded with a misrepresentation of data.