Buffalo area lags nation in number of home foreclosures as mortgage crisis passes us by
By Maki Becker
Updated: 07/26/08 12:51 PM
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- Prospective buyers look at a list of properties up for grabs at the City of Buffalo's annual foreclosure auction last October. The Buffalo area ranks at No. 95 out of 100 municipal areas in the number of home foreclosures.
Erie County has largely avoided the impact of the home mortgage crisis that has crippled housing markets across the country, said Erie County Clerk Kathy Hochul.
The county's foreclosure figures have remained the same, Hochul pointed out in a statement, with 952 foreclosures reported in the first half of this year, compared with 953 during the same time period on 2007.
The figure is 20 percent lower than in 2006.
A report released Friday by Realtytrac.com lists the Buffalo/Cheektowaga/Tonawanda area at 95 out of 100 of the largest metropolitan area for foreclosure rates.
The Web site also reported that one out of every 765 properties in the area is in foreclosure. Statewide, one out of every 493 properties is in foreclosure.
Topping the list was Stockton, Calif., where 1 out of every 25 properties was in foreclosure. California, Arizona and Florida have been particularly hard hit by the mortgage crisis.
Overall, the Web site found that foreclosure activity was up 14 percent during the second quarter of this year nationwide. It's up 121 percent compared with the second quarter of 2007.
"During these days of bleak economic news from around the country, we can take some comfort in the fact that fewer of our residents are losing their homes than in other, more prosperous regions," she said.
