Many foreclosure victims not likely to own homes again soon

Facing a foreclosure not only can lead to a person having their home taken from them, it can also have some other serious long-term financial impacts for a person. For example, having gone through a foreclosure (or a similar finance-related loss of a home) sometimes keeps a person from being able to be a homeowner again for a fairly significant amount of time. This can be seen in some estimates that were recently made in a report by the National Association of Realtors.

The estimates regard the over 9.3 million U.S. homeowners who, during the period going from 2006 to 2014, lost their home as a result of a foreclosure, a distress sale or a home surrender to a lender. The report estimates that, of these former homeowners, only around 2.5 million (well less than one-third) are likely to have already become homeowners again or likely to become homeowners again during the next eight years.

Why are the rest of the former homeowners unlikely to be back in the housing market within the next eight years? According to an official with the National Association of Realtors, there are multiple possible reasons a former homeowner could have for such unlikeliness. This includes emotional reasons, like the trauma of having one’s home taken away making a person reluctant to be a homeowner again. It also includes financial reasons, like having difficulty obtaining eligibility for mortgage loans.

As this illustrates, the impacts a foreclosure or related real-estate events can have on a person can be quite long-term in nature. Thus, when a person is facing a foreclosure, it can be very important for them to keep possible long-term implications in mind when trying to figure out how best to address their situation. Attorneys can help homeowners who are in danger of foreclosure with trying to find the debt relief options that are the best match for their long-term financial well-being and goals. 

Source: The Wall Street Journal, “Many Who Lost Homes to Foreclosure in Last Decade Won’t Return — NAR,” Laura Kusito, April 20, 2015