SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – Owning a home is the American dream. However, losing it can be a nightmare.
“In San Diego County, in the state of California and nationally, we're starting to normalize,” Karen Van Ness, President of the San Diego Association of Realtors, said.
“Our foreclosure activity is not at a high level by any means. It's higher than it was a year ago.”
Van Ness told ABC 10News added that borrowers now are more qualified due to stricter mortgage standards.
ABC 10News wanted to get Van Ness’ insight on the real estate market following an ABC News report stating foreclosure filings are on the rise.
ABC News broke down the data from the real estate data firm Attom.
It shows foreclosure filings nationally went up 21 percent in the first six months of 2026 compared to last year.
But there are factors that are different from this time last year, according to Van Ness.
“Our economy right now is not terrifically stable as a result of things that are going on in foreign countries, and it's impacting people's ability to afford mortgages with the cost of living, the cost of groceries, the cost of gas,” Van Ness said.
Those things could contribute to the numbers we’re seeing right now.
“So, if people are not prepared, they haven't saved, and they're getting squeezed on all sides, it's going to show a blip in the foreclosure activity,” Van Ness said. “And so, I think all of this is contributing to the blip that we're seeing in the foreclosure data.”
Van Ness told ABC 10News there were 4,570 foreclosure filings out of 14,644,735 housing units in the state of California according to Attom data for June 2026.
Whether it’s a blip or a building trend, if you’re in those tough times, call your lender asap.
“My experience with lenders is that they will help you to get through whatever that period of time is, you know, they can, they have a number of options available to them, Van Ness said. “They can say, OK, you know, we're going to give you a 6 month buy on your mortgage payments and we're going to tack it on to the end of your loan.”
She told ABC 10News lenders might be more sympathetic than you think.
“Lenders found out that foreclosing and taking properties back, it's not a real feasible solution,” Van Ness said. “Keeping your borrower in the house and get them through the tough time they're going through is a lot more, profitable and makes a lot more sense at the end of the day.”
