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In this Feb. 17, 2009 file photo, a foreclosure sign sits outside a home for sale.
(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
New Jersey continues to buck the national trends when it comes to the dubious housing market.
Recent data shows the average time for a homeowner to go through foreclosure has increased by 7 percent since last year, adding three months to the 2015 average.
Properties in foreclosure across the United States have dropped to pre-recession numbers, and the market continues to show signs of improvement with September marking an 11-year low for foreclosure starts, according to a report from ATTOM Data Solutions, the new parent company of California-based housing firm RealtyTrac.
The Garden State, however, still has one the highest foreclosure rates, second only to Delaware, with one in every 691 housing units having a foreclosure filing.
In addition, it takes nearly three and a half years, or 1,262 days, to complete the foreclosure process in New Jersey, which is the longest foreclosure timeline in the country.
Virginia continues to post the shortest foreclosure period, at 196 days, in a state where properties are not required to go through a judicial foreclosure process. New Jersey foreclosures are required to go into the state's court system, a process that takes on average about a year.
In Bergen County, the foreclosure process was the longest in the state, averaging 1,452 days, according to third quarter numbers. Hudson and Ocean followed with an average period of 1,408 and 1,396 days, respectively, to complete a filing.
ATTOM tracks foreclosure homes once a notice of default has been issued until it's sold at auction or as a bank-owned property, based on data collected from 2,200 counties nationwide.
New Jersey only tracks foreclosure properties in the court system. It does not count properties in default, the pre-foreclosure process, or once the property is turned over to a bank as a real estate owned property, which the state deems a post-foreclosure property.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig. Find NJ.com on Facebook.