Social Issue: Foreclosure
Earlier this year, current data released by the Department
of Housing and Urban Development are showing an alarming upswing
in the rate of foreclosures. In some areas, of all home owners
who were extended sub-prime loans, the rate of default is as
high as 14-20% when 4-6% is considered "healthy". One
million new foreclosures have been filed since the beginning
of 2009, which means roughly every 13 seconds someone has been
faced with the prospect of having no place to live. The
devastating numbers are expected to rise and the ripple effect
of these quickly vacated houses is felt throughout entire neighborhoods
as property values drop and communities are destroyed. While
some of those individuals and families are able to find a new
place to stay, even temporarily, all too many find themselves
with nowhere to turn.
A recent training based on information from the National Low
Income Housing Coalition brings up points that show that renters
are getting caught up in the foreclosure crisis, too. Here are
some of the ways that tenants are losing their homes through
no fault of their own:
1. Multi-unit properties are more vulnerable to foreclosure;
these are mainly rental properties.
2. Some renters live in single-family homes, too.
3. There are more renters in part due to the slow-down in home
sales and increase in foreclosures. These higher-income renters
are keeping demand high and competing with moderate and low-income
renters driving up rental costs.