Foreclosure is a term that many people are familiar with, but most don’t know anything about except that it is bad. That is, unless you are one of the millions of people across the United States that have recently experienced a home foreclosure. When a home is foreclosed on, it simply means that the lender is selling the home to somebody else. This also means that the current inhabitants will have to move out. There are a number of different reasons that can cause a foreclosure to happen, but perhaps the most common one is when the buyer of the home falls behind on their monthly payments. If the lender was able to easily re-sell the home, this really wouldn’t be as bad as it is, except of course for the original buyer of the home. It is not just one or two homes that need to be resold though, and this makes re-selling the home that much more difficult. If a buyer is eventually found, then you have to worry about any repairs that the house may need as a result of sitting for so long, which makes the process that much more difficult.
To get a better understanding of the current problem that the US is facing with foreclosures, let’s look at some statistics. I recently came across an email that showed maps, compliments of Google Maps, of the top 20 cities with the most foreclosure filings in the year of 2010. The top 20 cities were only composed of 5 different states. 1 state however, claims almost half of the cities from this list. Florida had 9 cities out of the top 20 cities, with the second highest city being Cape Coral, Florida. Cape Coral, Florida has an astounding 1 in 12 foreclosure rating. The city with the highest rating was slightly shocking. Nevada had only a handful of foreclosures when compared to the rest of the country, but Las Vegas, Nevada still has the highest foreclosure rating in the US, with 1 in 9 homes being foreclosed on. Following the map towards the west, it appears that the western half of the country is in much better condition. That is until you get to California. California has 7 out of the top 20 cities with the highest foreclosure rating.
When I first saw these maps, I was astounded because I had not realized how bad the home crisis in America really was. It was interesting to see that the middle of the country appeared relatively untouched when compared to the east and west coast. This could be a result of the lower populations in the middle of the country. This is not to say that there is not a problem however because the average foreclosure rate in the US is still 1 in 46 homes. With the vast majority of these foreclosures occurring due to non payment, it makes me wonder why someone would buy a house if they weren’t able to make the monthly payments on it. I have always been told, and I’m sure other figures will vary from mine, that you should have between 2 to 3 months worth of rent saved in case something happens, and you’re unable to work. Is this rule no longer followed? Just because a person has a great job, does not mean that they are successful and are able to move into a mansion.
The obvious impact that this is having to our economy is astounding, but what about the hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs that foreclosures incur. Once a foreclosed house is no longer inhabited, the electricity to the home is turned off. If there is nobody living in the home, then it is a waste of power to have the air running. The problem is that when you turn off the air conditioning in a home, it stops air flow which allows moisture to build up. The increase in moisture inside the home often promotes mold growth. If the mold formation is topical, then it is simply surface mold and can be easily wiped off. When mold is given the opportunity to grow for long periods of time, it often spreads deep inside walls and floors. Entire sections of the home will have to be tore out and rebuilt now, instead of simply wiping it off. This doesn’t have to be as bad as it sounds though, the increase in restoration jobs could offer a small counter to the effect that foreclosures are having on the economy, but only if the house is able to be sold.
It seems to me that realtors and restoration companies have an opportunity to really capitalize on a bad situation, and help the country’s economy as well. Some restoration companies like Snell Experts, a nationwide directory, are actually teaming up with realtors nationwide. There seems to be no shortage of homes that need to be sold, and a lot of these homes will need restoration work before they are livable again. If a realtor gets a restoration company to sign up for either a banner ad, or package of listings on Snell Experts, then they will receive 25% of that sale. Any type of restoration company can be listed on Snell Experts. Whether they are a painting company or a company that offers mold inspections and mold remediation, they can be listed. So if you are a realtor that has used a restoration company to fix a home that you were selling, send them in the direction of Snell Experts. Not only will you be helping a company get more exposure, but you can also put a little more money into your pockets from selling the home.
The foreclosure rating for the country is definitely appalling, and I expect that number to continue to climb. There may be a lot of job opportunities for restoration companies, but if the houses are not sold, those jobs will never come to fruition. Companies like Snell Experts are doing what they can to help aid the economy, but there is still a long ways to go, where home foreclosure’s are concerned!
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