Carroll County foreclosures are on pace to hit a new record this year, according to data from the tax assessor’s office.

Home foreclosures in 2008 totalled 973, and this year’s number could hit 990 if current trends continue. The number of foreclosures could jump still higher if the pace at which people fall behind on their mortgages continues to climb.

According to a new national report, the number of mortgage loans that are two months or more past due has climbed 58 percent from last year, and could indicate a new rash of foreclosures, which usually occur after four months of delinquency. Being two months behind on mortgage payments is usually considered the first step toward foreclosure, because it’s so difficult to catch up at that point.

In another foreboding sign that the economic recovery may be stalling, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that a rising percentage of homeowners falling into foreclosure have good credit but have lost their jobs in the recession, as opposed to the high-risk loans that failed in the beginning of the recession.

At Duffey Realty of Carrollton, Rett Harmon believes that an increase in foreclosures could saturate the market and further drive down prices, but he sees some signs of improvement.

“Sometimes the mortgage companies will offer the homeowner a temporary modification agreement, a reduction of payment rather than foreclosure,” said Harmon. “The term ‘short-sale’ is getting to be a lot more popular.”

In these cases, banks work with homeowners to sell houses that are no longer affordable rather than forcing them into foreclosure. This allows the bank to take a smaller loss, and is less detrimental to the homeowner, according to Harmon.

Sandra Ferguson, chief appraiser at the Carroll County Office of the Tax Assessor, tracks foreclosure statistics in Carroll County.

“A lot of the repossessions that we’re experiencing now are not so much these toxic mortgages that first caused all the problems,” said Ferguson. “Now it’s people who have been paying their bills all along but who have lost their job and can’t pay. It is a second wave, really.”

From January 1 through the beginning of September, Carroll County processed 1,022 repossession deeds and 639 repo-resales, as opposed to 305 fair market sales.

“These are people who didn’t get in over their head like a lot of people did to begin with, but they just don’t have a job now, their savings is gone, and without a job you can’t go out and borrow money to do your mortgage payments,” said Ferguson.

Foreclosure statistics typically lag behind several months due to the long process and many parties involved. As a result, an accurate analysis of the current situation won’t be available for two to three more months.

“When there is a foreclosure, it’s on the courthouse steps on the first Tuesday of the month, and then either the bank or the mortgage company ends up taking those properties, or somebody buys it on the courthouse steps, and a deed is then done, and it is recorded in the clerk’s office, and then eventually it gets over to us,” said Ferguson.

Frances Hunt, an agent with Century 21 Realty, said rising unemployment could further exacerbate a poor housing market.

“Unless people start getting jobs, getting employed, and are able to catch up, this could easily lead to more foreclosures,” said Hunt. “The only thing that’s going to help is for employment to go back up.”

Business foreclosures in Carroll County have also jumped this year, from 15 in 2008 to 26 so far in 2009. Business and industrial foreclosures in 2008 sold at or near market value, while properties foreclosed in 2009 have lingered on the market and continue to drive down property values.

Nevada leads the states with a 60-day mortgage delinquency rate of 14.5 percent, double last year’s rate, according to trend data from TransUnion. Florida comes in a close second at 13.3 percent, up from 7.8 percent in 2008, followed by Arizona and California. North Dakota leads the nation in mortgage holders who pay on time, with only 1.7 percent mortgage delinquency. Georgia lies in the middle of the pack with a rate of 7.06 percent, just over the national average of 6.25 percent.

“When people buy houses, they buy things for their houses, they fix up their houses, and they paint ’em,” said Hunt. “If people are not buying houses, they’re not buying all these other things that stimulate jobs for other people.”

Brian Robinson, press secretary for Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, says that bad politics are at fault.

“All this TARP money has gone to the big guys, but hasn’t gone to the community banks in Georgia,” said Robinson. “The stimulus has failed in its most important facet, and that’s in new job creation, which is the most fundamental part of the economy for the average citizen.”

Robinson said unemployment, which stands at 10.2 percent, is driving the rising mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates.

“It certainly explains why there are so many people who have always been responsible, who have always paid their bills on time, who have never tried to trick the system, are now losing their most important and cherished investment, their home,” said Robinson.

As of September, about 4 million homeowners nationwide were in foreclosure.

The deadline for homeowners to file an application to reassess the value of their property is April 1. For seniors over 65 as of January 1, and homeowners interested in getting a homestead exemption, the deadline to file an application with the Office of the Tax Assessor is April 1.