Hawai'i real estate foreclosure cases reached a record 990 last month as more homeowners continue to struggle with their mortgages in the weak real estate market and economy.

The number of cases in July compared with 229 a year earlier and 706 in June, according to California-based real estate research firm RealtyTrac. The previous high was 816 in May.

Foreclosures in Hawai'i are growing in part because weak home sales have made avoiding foreclosure harder for people who can't sell their house or pay their mortgage.

The economic slowdown that has included widespread cuts in wages and jobs has made it harder for homeowners to pay their mortgages. Statewide unemployment in June was 7.4 percent, a 31-year high.

The situation could become worse if state workers are forced to take proposed furloughs or pay cuts equating to a 13.8 percent wage reduction in each of the next two fiscal years.

Nationally, Hawai'i had the 15th-worst foreclosure rate at one filing per 512 households. The national average was one filing for every 355 households.

July's foreclosure count was largely due to more homes that were repossessed by lenders as opposed to new foreclosure cases.

RealtyTrac reported that about one-third of the 990 cases, or 323, were what's called real-estate-owned filings made when lenders take back homes. The previous high for real-estate-owned filings was 91 in June.

The July report shows that more homeowners lost their property than in any previous month since RealtyTrac began collecting data in 2005. On the brighter side, those cases reflect foreclosure actions initiated in earlier months that were also counted in foreclosure case tallies in earlier months.

The number of new foreclosure cases, which are reflected in the number of default notices filed last month, was third-highest for any month since foreclosures began their steep rise last year.

There were 186 default notices in July. That was more than 35 a year earlier and 155 in June, but less than 279 in May and 313 in September.

REPORTS QUESTIONED

Some local foreclosure attorneys and real estate experts question the accuracy of RealtyTrac's reports because the company doesn't distinguish between residential property and commercial property, which includes condotels and timeshare units that are caught up in the foreclosure mess.

Also, RealtyTrac's methodology of counting default notices, trustee sale notices and real-estate-owned properties leads to the possibility that one property could be counted three times in different months — first as a default notice, then as a trustee sale and then again if the lender acquires the property.

A January report by the Pew Center for Responsible Lending predicts there will be 18,600 homes lost through foreclosure in Hawai'i over the next four years, including 5,600 this year. The four-year projection equates to an average of 388 a month.

RealtyTrac's figures include a range of foreclosure filings, not all of which result in homeowners losing their home. For instance, some homeowners may receive a foreclosure notice and resolve the issue, perhaps by curing the default, restructuring the loan or selling the home before auction.

PER-ISLAND RATES

Local and national efforts have been ongoing to try to reduce foreclosures. The Hawai'i HomeOwnership Center and Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties are hosting a free seminar Aug. 29 about loan modification opportunities, short sales and ways to refinance mortgages on property that has lost value.

By county, Honolulu, or O'ahu, had the highest overall number of foreclosure filings at 542, but the lowest rate per household at one filing per 618 households. The Big Island had 197 filings, or one per 394 households. Maui had 180 filings, or one per 361 households. Kaua'i had 71 filings, or one per 411 households.