The Columbia metropolitan statistical area posted the second-lowest percentage of homes in foreclosure statewide for the first quarter of 2009, according to data released this morning.

A national comparison of owned homes versus homes in foreclosure shows the foreclosure problem to be concentrated in a relatively small number of metro areas, said the CEO of the national real estate tracking firm RealtyTrac.

The firm released its analysis of foreclosures in the nation’s 203 MSAs, which include metropolitan areas with at least 200,000 people. The analysis shows the percentage of homes in a region that have received at least a notice of default, which is one of the first steps in the foreclosure process.

The Columbia MSA ranked 155th out of 203, with 0.19% of homes with at least one foreclosure filing in the first three months of 2009. The Columbia metro area saw a 20.39% decline in foreclosures in the first quarter compared with the fourth quarter of 2008.

Nationally, the five MSAs with the highest percentage of home with one foreclosure filing were:

• Las Vegas-Paradise Nev. (4.48%)
• Merced, Calif. (4.21%)
• Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla. (3.85%)
• Stockton, Calif. (3.75%)
• Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. (3.54%)

"The metro areas with the highest levels of foreclosure activity in the first quarter of 2009 paint a picture of concentrated problems in a relatively small number of hard-hit areas,” said James J. Saccacio, RealtyTrac’s CEO.

Saccacio said sales activity appears to be increasing in some of the larger markets as home prices have fallen to levels that are attractive to first-time homebuyers and investors.

“While we expect many of these metro areas to continue to experience high levels of foreclosure activity throughout 2009, we also expect to see other markets rise up the ranks as unemployment rates surge throughout the country,” he said.

Foreclosures in South Carolina MSAs

*Out-of-state MSAs include parts of South Carolina.

Nationally, RealtyTrac reported that 0.63% of homes, or 803,489 homes, in the United States had a foreclosure filing in the first quarter of 2009.

Last week, RealtyTrac reported a 9% increase in foreclosure activity nationwide between the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009. Saccacio attributed a declining rate of bank repossession of foreclosed properties, called REOs, to moratoriums on foreclosures.

RealtyTrac forecast that a large number of new notices of default and a lifting of those moratoriums could increase the numbers of REOs in the second quarter of 2009.