Foreclosures drop in Spokane, soar in Kootenai County

The April home foreclosure rate in Kootenai County jumped 52 percent from March, and almost five-fold from last April, according to statistics released Wednesday by RealtyTrac Inc., an online marketplace for foreclosed properties. In Spokane, meanwhile, foreclosures dropped significantly month-over-month and year-over-year. One out of every 207 properties in Kootenai County, a total 283 properties, was the subject of either a default notice or notice of trustee sale. In March, a total 189 received notices, and in April 2008 just 61. The rate was enough to put the county third among Idaho’s 44 counties. Idaho itself, with notices going to one out of every 255 homes, had the fifth highest rate among the states. Only 53 Spokane County homes were either bank-owned or subject to a trustee sale notice. That’s down from 70 in March and 125 last April. The rate of one home per 3,680 was 24 percent lower than the rate for March, and 57 percent lower than last April’s rate. The Spokane County rate was one-quarter the one-per-817 homes for all of Washington, which ranked 26th among the states. Fewer homes were bank-owned or subject to trustee sale notice than in March, but the total, 3,359, was up one-third from last April.