The number of mortgage default notices sent to California homeowners increased during the first quarter of 2006, rising 23.4% from the fourth quarter of 2005, according to a recent report by DataQuick Information Systems. Lending institutions sent default notices to more than 18,600 homeowners between January 1 and March 31, up 28.7% when compared with the 14,501 default notices sent during the same period one year earlier.

Declining home appreciation rates impacted the rise in default activity during the first quarter, according to the report. While nearly all regions of California experienced an increase in foreclosures, mortgage loans were least likely to go into default in the Bay Area and most likely in the Central Valley and Inland Empire.