California Foreclosures Soar in June

According to this Los Angeles Business Journal article, California's rate of foreclosures soared 19% in June. Is this increase due to the impending new bankruptcy laws (a perverse rationale along the lines of "maybe I should go into bankruptcy now while I still can; while the consequences are still relatively tame") or is it a dark omen of things to come?

"The number of new foreclosures in California soared 19 percent last month, renewing worries that the state is sitting atop a real estate bubble that is about to burst."

"Nationwide, the number of properties entering foreclosure last month rose to 67,024 from 62,432 in May. Texas, Florida, California, Ohio and Illinois had the most new foreclosures and accounted for more than half the nation’s total with 37,249."

"The overall increase resulted in the highest number of new foreclosures reported in any one month this year and resulted in a 7.4 percent increase in the nation’s default rate. Nationally, one new foreclosure was filed for every 1,726 households."