President Donald Trump and a recently sold home.

By Chris Spiker From Daily Voice

Foreclosures surged in October, according to new data released as President Donald Trump proposes 50-year mortgages to solve the housing affordability crisis.

New starts on foreclosures jumped 20% year-over-year in October, real estate analytics firm ATTOM said on Thursday, Nov. 13. The data counted 36,766 properties with foreclosure filings, a 3% rise from September and the eighth straight month of annual increases.

ATTOM CEO Rob Barber said while foreclosures remain below historic highs during the subprime mortgage crisis of the late 2000s, homeowners continue to face a tougher real estate environment.

"The current trend appears to reflect a gradual normalization in foreclosure volumes as market conditions adjust and some homeowners continue to navigate higher housing and borrowing costs," said Barber.

The jump in foreclosure starts was strongest in Florida, Texas, and California. Lenders began the process on 25,129 properties nationwide in October, up 6% from September and 20% higher than in October 2024. 

October's completed foreclosures, also known as REOs, rose 32% from October 2024. Pennsylvania was the state with the fourth-most REOs, while New York City had the third-most among metropolitan areas with more than 1 million people.

The rising foreclosures come amid high mortgage rates, record consumer debt, and a weakening job market, according to Rick Sharga, CEO of real estate market intelligence firm CJ Patrick Co.

"None of these issues have impacted mortgage performance yet, but it would be unrealistic to assume that these trends, along with slow home sales and declining home price appreciation, won't lead to at least a slight increase in delinquencies and defaults in the months ahead," Sharga told CNBC.

ATTOM's data was released after Trump floated the idea of 50-year mortgages on Saturday, Nov. 8. In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump shared an image touting himself as the creator of 50-year mortgages alongside former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who helped create fixed-rate mortgages during the Great Depression.

Economists say that while a 50-year loan could reduce monthly payments, it would cost buyers hundreds of thousands of dollars more over time and slow down equity gains.

"This is not the best way to solve housing affordability," said Realtor.com senior economist Joel Berner. "The [Trump] administration would do better to reverse tariff-induced inflation, which is keeping the rates on existing mortgages high, and to encourage the expansion of housing supply by promoting homebuilding."

Median home prices in the US remain near record highs, with an average existing single-family home selling for $426,800 in the third quarter of 2025, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS.