March Foreclosures Steady For Worcester County

The March foreclosure rate in Worcester County held steady from the same month last year, at 1.6 percent, according to First American CoreLogic, a national company that collects real estate data.

Still, mortgage delinquency rates for the county have increased, with 6.1 percent of mortgage loans 90 or more days delinquent this March, compared with 4.2 percent last year.

The city's foreclosure rate was lower than the national average of 2.1 percent but higher than the Massachusetts average of 1.3 percent and fell into CoreLogic's "moderate" classification.

The company sorts foreclosure rates by zip code, and it lists "high" foreclosure rates of 2.8 percent or more in zip codes covering Athol and Phillipston, Gardner, East Brookfield and parts of Worcester.