Foreclosures Are Climbing in Florida — Here's What Sellers Need to Know

Nearly 40,000 properties across the country had a foreclosure filing in July 2026 — a figure that rose 1% from June and 10% from the same month last year, according to ATTOM's latest U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. Florida, Nevada, and South Carolina recorded the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, with the Sunshine State drawing particular attention given its overlapping pressures of rising insurance costs and softening home prices.

Florida's Foreclosure Rate Is Double the Problem It Looks Like on Paper

Nationally, foreclosure filings touched 0.03% of all housing units in July. Florida came in at 0.04% — elevated, but the headline number undersells the layered stress underneath it. Homeowners in the state have been squeezed simultaneously by surging insurance premiums and declining property values, a combination that leaves little financial buffer when something goes wrong — a job loss, a rate adjustment, an unexpected repair bill.

Mike Sibley, a CPA and partner at James Moore, an accounting and tax firm with offices across Florida, put it plainly: the foreclosure rate alone doesn't tell the full story. Housing costs, local economic conditions, and household cash flow all feed into why certain markets see more distress activity than others.

Punta Gorda, Florida had the highest foreclosure rate of any major metro area in the country in July 2026 — one filing for every 899 housing units. That's a striking concentration in a market with a median listing price of $370,000. Las Vegas and Killeen, Texas rounded out the top three worst metros, all located in Sun Belt regions disproportionately exposed to climate-related insurance increases.

Completed Foreclosures Are Up 23% Year Over Year Nationally

Beyond filings, completed foreclosures — properties that have actually been repossessed by lenders — tell a sharper story. The U.S. recorded 4,764 completed foreclosures in July 2026, nearly flat with June but up 23% from July 2025, when lenders took back 3,866 homes. Texas led all states with 1,265 repossessions; California and North Carolina followed. Houston alone accounted for 405 completed foreclosures, with Dallas (223) and San Antonio (128) close behind.

One important note from ATTOM CEO Rob Barber: despite the annual increases, current foreclosure volumes remain below pre-pandemic historical averages. The market hasn't broken — but it is bending in ways that matter for sellers.

What Rising Foreclosures Mean If You're Planning to Sell in Florida Right Now

Foreclosure activity doesn't exist in a vacuum — it reshapes the competitive landscape for every conventional seller in the same market. Here's how it plays out on the ground:

• More distressed listings in your neighborhood pull comps down. When foreclosed and bank-owned properties sell at discounts — and they typically do — those sales become part of the comparable sales data appraisers use to value your home. Even if your property is in excellent condition, a cluster of distressed sales nearby can suppress your appraised value and what buyers are willing to offer.
• Buyers gain more negotiating leverage. As foreclosure inventory grows, buyers have more options — including deeply discounted distressed properties. That shifts the overall dynamic from seller-favored to more balanced or even buyer-favored in affected submarkets. Sellers who priced to peak-2024 values and haven't adjusted are increasingly vulnerable to sitting on the market.
• Insurance costs are a live issue in buyer negotiations. Florida's insurance premium environment is already a known stressor for buyers. When foreclosures signal broader financial strain in a market, buyers get more cautious — asking more questions, requesting more concessions, and walking away faster if the numbers don't work.
• Timing matters more than ever. Waiting to sell in hopes that values recover while foreclosure volume continues to climb is a real risk. Each completed foreclosure in your zip code is a data point that works against your asking price.

The practical takeaway for Florida sellers is this: the window to list ahead of increasing distressed competition is narrowing. Markets like Punta Gorda — already the nation's highest-rate metro — will face sustained pricing pressure as REO inventory works through the system. Sellers in Southwest Florida especially should get a clear-eyed read on what comparable distressed sales are doing to their neighborhood values right now, not six months from now.

If you want a fast, certain exit from the market without competing against foreclosure-priced listings, understanding what your home would fetch in an as-is sale is a reasonable data point to have. Local Home Buyers USA's instant-offer tool can put a number on the table with no obligation, which at minimum gives you a floor to compare against the conventional listing route.

The broader market, as ATTOM notes, remains structurally resilient. But resilience at the national level doesn't mean your specific zip code isn't under pressure. For Florida sellers, the smarter move is to treat these numbers as a signal, not background noise.