Housing Market Winners And Losers

As so many homeowners have faced, or will face, foreclosure the country is left to wonder who will be next.  Fortunately, the crisis has not gone unnoticed and the government has stepped in to help struggling homeowners. There have been several federal programs developed aimed at helping homeowners avoid foreclosure and get out of mortgage debt. However, many have criticized the uninspiring outcomes of such programs.

Staggering Statistics

Over the last few years the economy has continued to beat down on industries around the country, the housing market being one of the most noticeably beaten. From February of 2009 to August of 2011, the median home value dropped to $172,600, a 9.9 percent drop in price. Some cities saw even greater drops in home value. The median home value in Homestead, Florida, a suburb of Miami, fell 48.8 percent, the largest drop in the country. Las Vegas, Nevada, Trenton, New Jersey and Pontiac, Michigan were close followers in the “losers” category.

Of course, not all cities have suffered the same fate. Some local housing markets have managed to scathe by relatively unaffected, and a few have even seen improvements over the past few years. Weston, Florida saw an increase in median home value of nearly 15.1 percent. Close followers in the “winners “category include Utica, New York, Morristown, Tennessee and Penn Hills, Pennsylvania.