Is Another Mortgage Foreclosure Crisis On The Horizon For Florida?

Florida deserves its reputation as a place where people spend money beyond their means, especially on real estate.  Who can resist the siren song of Florida thunder echoing through a Star Island beachfront palace or suburban McMansion?  Local news reports are replete with tales of people who bought mansions, horse ranches, and luxury condominiums with fraudulently obtained COVID-19 pandemic relief funds.  Some of the most chilling scenes in The Big Short take place in South Florida, from the dancer who uses every banknote she earns from pole dances to pay mortgage payments on five real estate properties to the real estate agent who flippantly attributes the inability of sellers to find buyers for their houses to a “gully” in the housing market.  Home mortgages do not occupy nearly as prominent a position in the news cycle as they did in 2008, but part of that is because worker burnout and the rising prices of almost everything get more press.  Plenty of Floridians are struggling to keep up with payments on their home mortgages.  If one of them is you, contact a Jupiter foreclosure defense lawyer.

How Florida’s Home Mortgage Foreclosure Statistics Stack Up Against Other States

In the first six months of 2021, fewer than 8,000 home mortgages in Florida entered foreclosure, but in the first six months of 2022, lenders initiated foreclosure proceedings on more than 17,000 home mortgages.  This means that more foreclosure cases this year are taking place in Florida than in any other state.  California is a close second, with over 16,000 foreclosure cases, but California has a much larger population than Florida.  In terms of the rate of foreclosure, Florida ranks sixth, behind Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Delaware, and South Carolina.  In the first half of this year, approximately one out of every 560 home mortgages in Florida is in foreclosure.

Part of the reason that Florida’s foreclosure rate is not higher is the relatively low rate of homeownership in Florida; a greater percentage of Florida residents rent their homes, compared to residents of most other states.  While the average home price in Florida is $232,000, just above the national average of $229,000, the average annual household income in Florida is $57,000, well below the national median household income of $64,000.

How to Avoid Mortgage Foreclosure If You Are Struggling With Your Mortgage Payments

If your mortgage lender has sent you a foreclosure notice, you should contact a mortgage foreclosure defense lawyer immediately, because the sooner you act, the greater your chances of being able to stay in your home.  If you are in danger of missing a mortgage payment or have already missed one, you should take action before the lender sends you a foreclosure notice.  You might be able to avoid foreclosure by filing for bankruptcy, taking out a debt consolidation loan, or renegotiating the terms of your mortgage.

Contact a South Florida Debt Lawyer About Avoiding Mortgage Foreclosure

A South Florida debt lawyer can help you if you are struggling with mortgage debt and are worried about your home mortgage lender foreclosing on your house.  Contact Nowack & Olson, PLLC in Jupiter, Florida to discuss your case.

Sources:

thecapitolist.com/florida-sixth-in-nation-in-foreclosure-rate-first-in-total-foreclosures/

thecentersquare.com/pennsylvania/how-the-foreclosure-rate-in-pennsylvania-compares-to-the-nation/article_82b4af20-102b-5873-bc0c-576e642094a2.html