It is no surprise that Nevada, Florida, Michigan, California and Colorado are at the top of list of states with the highest foreclosure rates in 2007. I was interested to see how us here in New Jersey stacked up:
New Jersey
Households in some stage of foreclosure in 2007: .902%
2007 foreclosure filings: 53,652
Percent change from 2006: 34.06%
Percent change from 2005: 52.75%
Many homeowners are feeling the double pinch of being unable to make their monthly payment obligations. Many people refinanced their homes and used the appreciated equity to pay off high credit card balances. Unfortunately after the cards were paid off, many people charged up large balances again. What happened next? Refinance the house again and pay off the cards. Now, with the market in the toilet, their homes and their cards are maxed out and they are unable to make either payment.
See this report from the Associated Press about the sharp increase in unpaid credit card bills.
Home sales have fallen throughout most of the country, but real estate agent commissions appear to be holding steady at just over 5%.
The total amount of commissions paid to agents and brokers dropped this year as home sales tumbled. Agents are expected to collect $55 billion in commissions this year, compared to about $65 billion in 2006, $68 billion in 2005 and $61 billion in 2004.
Americans paid $19 billion more in commissions in 2007 than in 2000 largely because of the surge in home prices during the boom. But Realtors aren't celebrating. The number of agents ballooned during the boom when business was plentiful. These days, listings often linger for months.
