Homes With Negative Equity at Risk

Home owners who are upside down in their mortgages are on shakier ground than other home owners in this tricky housing market. Owing more than a home is worth makes it more likely that a home owner will simply walk away from a property.

The finding came from using RealtyTrac data, which tracks foreclosures, as well as data from multiple listing services, bank-owned property records, bankruptcy records, loan histories, tax liens, and lender information. Forbes magazine evaluated which counties in the country had the most foreclosures and the most negative equity loans. Happily, I can report that no counties in Metro Atlanta are in the Top 10 List!

Wayne County, Mich., home to Detroit, is first, with 10,622 homes in foreclosure with negative equity, 176 of which have more than $100,000 of negative equity. Clark County, Nev., home to Las Vegas, has 4,278 homes in foreclosure with negative equity.

Here’s the list of counties with the most foreclosures, including the percentage of homes entering foreclosure with negative equity:

 

1. Wayne County, Mich.: 38.6%
2. Clark County, Nev.: 22.9%
3. Maricopa County, Ariz.: 15.9%
4. Riverside County, Calif.: 18.7%
5. Los Angeles County, Calif.: 10%
6. Cook County, Ill.: 12.8%
7. Broward County, Fla.: 17.79%
8. Sacramento County, Calif.: 26.7%
9. Miami-Dad County, Fla.: 11.6%
10. San Bernardino County, Calif.: 18%

What this really means is that millions of Americans live in a home that they are upside down in. That means they owe more than what their house is worth. Technically, if the market hadn’t slumped, many of the people would not be in this situation. Quite often people are caught in an Adjustable Rate Mortgage. They didn’t realize how it would affect them when it did adjust. Then, once that happened and their monthly payment went up, anywhere from a few hundred to $1000 a month, the homeowners could not afford the payment. Many of these people kept their credit in good shape, however if the value of their home went down, they could not refinance, because their home would not appraise for the value they owed. That is being upside down in a mortgage. Much like a car loan, but much more difficult to remedy that a car loan. What options do these people have? They either loose their home to foreclosure, or pay the over inflated fees, many times not paying other bills to keep their home.

I’m sorry if I appear upset over this topic. I see it every day, in my line of work. I also personally know families that have lost their family home to this epidemic. I sometimes feel powerless to make a difference. I do know that I can try to help a family prevent foreclosure by negotiating with their lender, on their behalf, and getting an extension. This, many times, can be enough time to sell the house and at least get it out from their credit report. Having a foreclosure on your credit report will haunt you for at least 3 years. Let’s try to prevent this from happening to you, or anyone you know. Even if you are not living in my area, please feel free to give me a call and we’ll see what we can do to prevent this from happening! I’m more than happy to answer questions on the phone, and if you need more help, I’ll help find someone in your area that can help.

Blessings to you and yours!
–Darcy

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Darcy Perry
YOUR Real Estate Specialist!

Keller Williams Realty Across Atlanta ~ Generations Realty Group
76 Highland Pavilion Ct. ~ Suite 125 ~ Hiram, GA 30141
Office: 770-874-5333 Direct: 770-874-5356
E-fax: 404-601-1849 Cell: 404-441-9986
Website: www.GenerationsRealtyGroup.com

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