Home Foreclosures Are on the Rise.
Home foreclosures were on the rise across the United States in May as Americans struggled with higher living costs.
The details: According to a report from real estate data researcher ATTOM, 32,621 properties had foreclosure filings in May, a three percent jump from the prior month.
- Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM, said the data “highlights nuanced shifts in the housing market.”
What’s driving the rise? When you buy a home, you lock in a fixed monthly mortgage [in most cases]. But expenses like property taxes, home insurance, energy, and internet service are not fixed – and they’re all rising – putting the squeeze on homeowners.
- Property taxes now cost Americans an average of $18,118 annually, up 26 percent from four years ago.
- Home insurance premiums jumped 11.3 percent from last year alone.
- Electricity prices have risen more than 25 percent since Biden took office
- Internet service has jumped more than 11 percent since Biden took office.
Zoom in: Nationally, 1 in every 4,320 housing units began foreclosures last month. The states with the highest foreclosure rates were:
- New Jersey: 1 in 1,939
- Illinois: 1 in every 2,362
- Deleware: 1 in every 2,595
- Connecticut: 1 in every 2,600
- Florida: 1 in every 2,638
Zoom out: Home affordability is at its worst level in decades, according to Zillow. In 2020, the national average salary required to buy a home was $59,000. Today, it’s $106,500 – a 61 percent increase.
Big picture: As we draw closer to the 2024 election, voters continue to tell pollsters that inflation and the economy are their top concerns—and on both issues, they prefer Trump over Biden by 14 percent.
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