By Andy Owens
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CHARLESTON -- Foreclosures were up nearly 26% across South Carolina in February compared to the same month last year, according to data released Thursday.

National real estate tracking firm, RealtyTrac reported that South Carolina had 3,114 foreclosure filings during the month and more than 1,000 homes had been repossessed by lenders.

Those numbers indicate that one out of every 660 homes in the state is in distress, which ranks South Carolina 20th in the nation for the number of foreclosures. In February 2009, one out of every 880 homes had a filing.

RealtyTrac also reported that six states accounted for more than 60% of the foreclosures in the U.S. in February.

California led the way, with 68,562 properties receiving a foreclosure filing during the month. Foreclosure activity in Florida increased nearly 15% from the previous month. Increasing foreclosure activity boosted Michigan’s total to third highest among the states.

The other three included Illinois, Arizona and Texas. Georgia was the only Southern state in the top nine with 12,177 filings and more than 3,700 repossessions of distressed properties.

Foreclosures across major markets in S.C. for February 2010

Source: RealtyTrac’s U.S. Foreclosure Market Report

* Newberry County had three foreclosures in January, which accounted for the dramatic percentage reported in February.