2012, the percent had fallen to 3.1 Over the same period, the backlog of <br />loans in the foreclosure process decreased only slightly, from 4.6% to 4.4% <br />of mortgages. Delinquencies and foreclosures are concentrated by state, <br />with California, Florida, Nevada, and Arizona hit particularly hard. <br />Between early 2007 and the first quarter of 2010, 6.1 million foreclosure <br />notices were issued on first-lien loans. In early 2010, the number of loans <br />in the foreclosure process was 2.1 million, which was nearly four times the <br />number of foreclosures in process three years earlier. <br />Figure 7. Number of loans (millions) in foreclosure proceedings <br />4.0 <br />3.5 <br />3,0 <br />2.5 <br />2.0 <br />INN N1111111ilil <br />O.C <br />Ln rti r► a17 77 17 <br />ci M Co <br />C> $ g A ca <br />N N N rv <br />* Ir Foreclosure • At Least 90 Clays Past Clue <br />Note. MBA estimates that the survey covers 85-88 percent of loans outstanding. <br />Source. JCHS tahulatrons of Mortgage Bankers Association, National Delinquency Surveys. <br />E; Q <br />Source: State of the Nation's Housing, 2012. The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, p. 3. <br />http://www.jchs.harvard.edu/research/state_nations_housing <br />Since 2008, foreclosures have contributed to a sharp decrease in housing <br />prices, leaving roughly 11.1 million homeowners underwater on their <br />mortgages (where the value of the house is less than the owner's <br />mortgage). These loans equate to $717 billion in negative equity. As with <br />home foreclosures, underwater mortgages are concentrated <br />geographically. In Nevada, 61 % of mortgages are underwater, the highest <br />rate in the country. Florida and California account for more than a third of <br />the nation's underwater mortgages. <br />Long run trends in home ownership and demand <br />The long-term market outlook shows that homeownership is still the <br />preferred tenure. While further homeownership gains are likely during <br />the next decade, they are not assured. Additional increases depend, in <br />Page 40 ECONorthwest Part 11 - Eugene Housing Needs Analysis <br />