Bankruptcy

Another ?Foreclosure Wave? to Come? Are We Even Off the First Wave?

By Meaghan Olson

With conversations swaying toward the July decrease in unemployment numbers and the excitement over the prospect of a teeter toward recovery, there is one major aspect to our current financial plight that’s lacking in coverage: foreclosure.

When foreclosure is brought up, it’s mostly talked about as though we have rode the first and mightiest of the waves and are settled into a set of less fierce waves of foreclosures, offering conjecture that the mend has begun.

Foreclosures Are Still a Top Issue

However, that might not be all that accurate of an assumption.

In fact, there are still many experts out there who believe we’re just riding the first wave of the foreclosure epidemic.

Second Wave to Come?

Of the assumption of a ?second wave?, Matt Padilla from the O.C. Register has a tone of indignation which might actually surmise the thoughts of most experts in the field: ?To say there is a second wave implies the (current) wave has receded.?

Conceding to the same thought is Sam Khater, senior economist, First American CoreLogic, ?I don?t see that the wave has receded.?

Some Foreclosure Prevention Measures Have Helped

Although Khater concedes to the fact that federal and state efforts have acted in delaying a relevant amount of foreclosures, he is vehement in asserting that these efforts only ?prevented a few?.

More simply, it seems by all the true indicators that our foreclosure situation isn?t in the midst of a second wave but more in the spray of one giant one.

Another trusted economist and famed blogger who is not buying into the ?second wave? theory is Barry Ritholtz.

Geographic Foreclosure Stats

In July, Ritholtz?s shows in his blog The Big Picture, a graph of staggering proportion. Wherein he examines the findings and offers that of all 50 states within the U.S, in the month of June, three of them (California, Florida, Nevada) account for nearly half of the country?s foreclosure-related activity.

To that fact, Ritholtz observes that the top 10 states accounted for 75% of all foreclosures for the month of June.

So if you are a resident of California or Florida you may not be so quick to agree with a second wave entering as much as you would the tsunami which has riveted your state.

Of course, those who would argue against these findings would say that the reason why California and Florida are at the top of the list and still climbing are because they are the top two states from the housing boom of the 90?s and early 2000.

While this may be accurate, it still does not negate the fact that foreclosures are in a perpetual rise.

Additional Information: Bankruptcy and Foreclosure

Full post as published by The Bankruptcy Blog on August 12, 2009 (boomark / email).