RALEIGH—
The state is on pace for a record number of foreclosures in 2010, according to a report released by the NC Justice Center.If average foreclosure rates for the year stay constant, North Carolina will reach a record of 70,000-plus filings for 2010, according to the report.
By the end of July, the state had experienced more than 40,000 filings enough, if trends hold, to eclipse last year's record of 63,289.
"The foreclosure crisis is devastating for North Carolina's working families," said Alfred Ripley, head of the NC Justice Center's Consumer Action Network. "Across the state, people are struggling to stay in their homes.
The top three North Carolina counties for foreclosures are Mecklenburg, with 6,726 so far this year, Wake (3,246) and Guilford (2,542).
Rounding out the top ten are Franklin (1,449), Union (1,179), New Hanover (1,126), Durham (1,109), Buncombe (1,073), Gaston (1,068), and Cumberland (961) counties.
"Now more than ever, we have to protect our state's homeowners by supporting home preservation programs such as the Housing Finance Agency's Home Protection Program and the NC Commissioner of Banks Foreclosure Prevention Project," said Ripley.
