Foreclosures spike across the state of Florida

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - Some possible bad news for Florida homeowners right now. Florida is seeing more foreclosures than all but two other states. Last month was up 23-percent over May of 2018.

In May, one in every 1,200 homes had a foreclosure filing in Florida, the third highest in the nation. Local Realtor John Wilcher says it a trend that has been creeping up on us around the Suncoast.

“So locally, if you look at the numbers from January 1st to June 1st from this year compared to last year, the numbers are up slightly. There were 224 properties that were foreclosed this year compared to 184 last year,” said Wilcher.

Wilcher says despite the increase, it still is a healthy market with the influx of people moving to Florida.

Loan officer David McLaughlin says one of the contributing factors to foreclosures is that wages in Florida have remained the same over the years.

“Insurance and taxes continue to go up, so when people budgeted for a home 3-5 years ago, all of a sudden when things get higher, they may have a second mortgage, people are taking equity lines out,” said McLaughlin.

But McLaughlin says one of the biggest reasons for the increase in foreclosures is home affordability. “So many home borrowers are being stretched into homes or neighborhoods that are a little higher than they usually can afford.”

The majority of foreclosures in Florida are taking place in the state’s panhandle. “A lot of foreclosures come after a natural disaster. So the hurricane in North Florida caused job loss."

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