Inexpensive Mortgages and Rising Demand for U.S. Homes

U.S. foreclosure filings fell in April to the lowest level in more than six years as inexpensive mortgages and rising demand for homes allowed troubled owners to refinance or sell before losing their properties to lenders.

A total of 144,790 properties received notices of default, auction or seizure, down 5 percent from March and 23 percent from a year earlier, RealtyTrac said today. It was the lowest tally since February 2007, the Irvine, California-based data seller said in a report. One in 905 households got a filing.

Borrowing costs close to historic lows and an improving labor market have combined to aid the housing market, boosting prices and allowing distressed homeowners to rework loans or sell property for less than the amount owed, known as a short sale. U.S. home prices rose 10.5 percent in March from a year earlier, data provider CoreLogic said earlier this week.

Bloomberg

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