![Foreclosures Near Record Lows Despite Market Concerns [New LendingTree Report]](https://realtytimes.com/images/k2/783126eab57c24f7d0020fdb10535472.jpg)
Though home prices appear to have leveled off in many places, they remain near record highs across the U.S.
With steep housing costs, some doubtlessly have flashbacks to the last time prices rose dramatically — the early to mid-2000s before the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009. Looking back may cause some to panic, as the Great Recession brought significant decreases in home values and a large number of foreclosures. Fortunately, today’s housing market — as pricey as it is — appears to be in much better shape. We analyzed the latest housing data and found that relatively few homeowners have lost their homes due to foreclosure. Here's what else we found.
- Across the U.S., only 46,237 homes are vacant due to foreclosure. For comparison, there are 143.4 million housing units in the 50 states (excluding the District of Columbia).
- Homes nationwide are unlikely to be empty due to foreclosure — even if vacant. Across the U.S., 13,868,075 housing units are vacant. Of that amount, only 0.33% are empty because of foreclosure.
- New York, Ohio and Michigan have the most foreclosed homes. In these states, 4,342, 3,489 and 3,454, respectively, are vacant due to foreclosure. On average, 0.06% of homes in these states are empty because they’ve been foreclosed on.
- Alaska, Rhode Island, Utah and Wyoming have no reported foreclosed homes. While the American Community Survey estimates there are zero foreclosed homes across these states, margins of error could impact that, albeit not by much.
You can check out our full report here: https://www.lendingtree.com/home/mortgage/home-foreclosures-study/
LendingTree's Senior Economist and report author, Jacob Channel, had this to say:
"One of the main reasons why foreclosures aren’t common is because most homeowners are sitting on mortgage rates below 5% and thus have very manageable monthly payments. On top of that, strict lending standards implemented in the wake of the Great Recession help to ensure that, even if their rates and payments are high, people who get mortgages aren’t likely to default on them."
