Southern states hit hard by sub-prime bust
As you are probably aware, there is disturbing news in the housing markets as a result of fallout from the sub-prime lending crisis (which anyone who has been following the problem of predatory lending probably saw coming).
Shock waves continue to ripple throughout the economy, affecting homebuilders, construction trades, building materials, and now real estate markets, as foreclosure rates continue to skyrocket.
Florida is one of the hardest hit states, with existing home sales off 41% in the second quarter of 2007 as compared to 2006, and foreclosures are up 84% in the first half of 2007 as compared to 2006.
According to data from the National Association of Realtors, six Southern states (Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Georgia, and Louisiana) had sales declines worse than the national average.
Data from RealtyTrac, which tracks foreclosures, shows that Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee all had higher foreclosure rates than the national average.
Here's a summary of the data for Southern states...
Decline in 2007 Q2 home sales as compared to 2006:
| FLORIDA | -41.3% |
| TENNESSEE | -21.5% |
| VIRGINIA | -15.3% |
| WEST VIRGINIA | -13.6% |
| GEORGIA | -13.1% |
| LOUISIANA | -12.5% |
| SOUTH CAROLINA | -9.3% |
| MISSISSIPPI | -7.5% |
| NORTH CAROLINA | -4.5% |
| ALABAMA | -3.1% |
| KENTUCKY | -2.4% |
| ARKANSAS | -0.9% |
| U.S. | -10.8% |
Foreclosures for first half of 2007:
| Rank | State | Filings | Per Household | % change from 2006 |
| 5 | Florida | 102,213 | 81 | 84 |
| 7 | Georgia | 45,027 | 84 | 13 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 21,447 | 123 | 12 |
| 16 | Arkansas | 6,901 | 181 | 13 |
| 19 | North Carolina | 17,428 | 226 | 39 |
| 31 | Kentucky | 4,503 | 414 | 55 |
| 34 | Virginia | 7,430 | 427 | 289 |
| 38 | Alabama | 4,113 | 506 | 223* |
| 39 | Louisiana | 3,660 | 530 | 411* |
| 42 | South Carolina | 2,146 | 898 | -51 |
| 44 | West Virginia | 722 | 1,208 | 69 |
| United States | 925,986 | 134 | 56 |