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How You Are Affected By The Foreclosure Next Door

Posted Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Your neighbor is facing a foreclosure. Not your problem, right. Think again. If you have a foreclosure in your neighborhood even if you are not struggling to pay the mortgage in your own home, it can spell trouble for your property. If you think the foreclosure crisis spells bad news for a number of individuals, but will have no impact on you, you are wrong. There are a number of reasons you should help your neighbor avoid foreclosure is you can.

Millions of Americans are losing their homes, but the impact is that these neighborhoods are drastically changing. If you live in a neighborhood that has seen a number of foreclosures, your property values could be at a standstill or worse dropped significantly. In addition, neighborhoods with heavy foreclosure statistics have been proven to see more vagrants, drug dealers and prostitutes as these people take advantage of the empty buildings. As more and more homes are seen to be empty, their friends pass along the word and the neighborhood will go downhill. This is just another reason for you to help your neighbor stop foreclosure.

When your neighbor has a foreclosure and the house is vacant, it is a welcome mat for vandals. Thieves love to frequent foreclosed homes, stripping copper wires, plumbing, carpet and more valuable items from the home, leaving it even more of an eyesore. All neighbors can do is watch helplessly as their neighborhood becomes less desirable to live in. In addition, broken windows and overgrown lawns send a clear signal that the neighborhood has fallen on bad times and that message will include your home. Inner city problems like graffiti and drugs will enter the empty buildings and have a stronger influence than the rest of the well meaning neighbors.

As foreclosures spike, gang activity and crime accompanies the problem hand in hand. Studies have shown that for every 1 percent increase in foreclosures, there is an associated and accompanied 2.23 percent increase in violent crime and problems. There have been numerous examples of the impact of foreclosures on such cities as the hard hit Cleveland, whose Slavic Village had troubles with foreclosures over a decade ago. Las Vegas, Jacksonville Florida, Miami Florida, Orlando Florida, Stockton California and many other area will feel the same changes.

The foreclosures from high cost loans transformed the middle class neighborhood to a series of empty eyesores, encouraging crime, vagrants and drugs. As the quality of life disappears, so do the prices on the homes, trapping existing neighbors into a lower value home in a decreasing neighborhood. More and more homeowners feel the impact of the foreclosure tidal wave.

Roughly 3 percent of all homeowners are thought to go into foreclosures by the end of 2009. However, from this small 3 percent, 43.5 percent of all homeowners will feel the impact of foreclosure crisis. This means that nearly 40 million homeowners will see their home values plummet in the next two years due to foreclosures. For each home, that is an estimated loss of 8,771 dollars. This is a significant loss and provides a definite tangible effect on the economy as many homeowners have the majority of their portfolio in the equity of their home. If the neighborhood is in a state that is more likely to experience a foreclosure, the financial depression can be even worse, making the average loss drastically higher, no matter what the other homes are doing.

So what can you do to help stop the foreclosure crisis affecting your neighborhood. The first thing you can do it talk with your neighbor openly about the issue. Let them know that you are a helping friend and are willing to help with their financial crisis. I do not mean by paying their mortgage but by finding a home buyer for their property. After all if you find a buyer the home will not go vacant and your home value will not go down.

Help your neighbor or friend who is facing foreclosure and thinking how can I sell my house, by getting them in contact with a professional real estate investor who buys houses to stop foreclosure. The fastest way to contact them is by typing the words Local Home Buyer into Google and completing some online forms. You will be connect with a local home buyer in your neighborhood that will give you a free offer on your house at no cost or obligation, so you have nothing to loose.