Florida Reeling From Staggering Increase in Foreclosures

A pre-foreclosure statistical company has announced a staggering 325 percent increase in South Florida foreclosures last October as compared to the same month last year. Statistics show that Miami-Dade County led the pack with 5,886 foreclosures followed by Broward County at 4,099 homes and Palm Beach with 3,05 home foreclosures.

Affected areas in Miami-Dade County include Miami, Hialeah, Homestead, Miami-beach and Doral. For Broward County, areas that were hardest hit by foreclosures are Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Miramar, Pompano Beach and Pembroke Pines. Areas affected in Palm Beach County include West Palm Beach, Lake Worth, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach and Delray Beach.

The company did not report all gloom however, as statistics show an improving monthly trend with declining numbers from September to October of this year. Experts are optimistic that this trend could signal stability in the region, with inventories of foreclosure properties tapering down. With less inventories of marked-down properties sold at very low rates, the housing industry could bounce back with more stabilized home prices.

However, experts are worried that stabilizing home prices may not be affordable for low income buyers. Income flows have not been commensurate with housing rates and is further aggravated by more job losses and unemployment. The increases in foreclosures in the previous months have flooded the market with more housing units than there are homeowners.

Nationwide, the count amounts to 24 million vacant homes. Banks and financial institutions are trying to sell these homes at much lower rates to get them off their books. The Neighborhood Stabilization Program is also aiming to purchase some of these properties for rehabilitation to be sold to low-income families under government subsidies.

Experts are optimistic that the incoming President Barack Obama will provide more support to the housing industry and put the economy back up. In Florida, a rebound in the real estate industry could spell more economic stability for the region.