Blog

Drew Harwell | Tampa Bay Times | “Florida ended 2013 once again as America’s reigning foreclosure king, though amid the housing recovery new cases plunged, RealtyTrac data released Thursday shows. About 107,000 new foreclosures began last year in Florida, a 31 percent drop from 2012, as banks continued to tussle with homeowners in the aftermathRead more

Christine DiGangi | Credit.com | “There are fewer than 2 million mortgages in serious delinquency as of November, a 26 percent decline from the previous year and a 5-year low, according to the monthly CoreLogic Foreclosure Report. A seriously delinquent mortgage means the homeowner is more than 90 days past-due on payments and is in danger of defaultRead more

NBC 6 South Florida | “Two people were arrested in connection with an $8 million rental fraud scheme that involved dozens of victims in Broward, Palm Beach and Martin counties, authorities said Monday. Robert Allen Tribble Jr., 50, of Jupiter filed fraudulent quit-claim and warranty deeds to take control of homes in foreclosure, the FloridaRead more

Ted Jackovics | Tampa Tribune Staff | “Florida will need a few more years to climb completely out of the hole left by the recession, but various economic indicators are gradually returning to typical growth levels, the Legislature’s research office said in its latest report. Trends are positive for two key elements of Florida’s economy: Personal income growthRead more

JANN SWANSON | MortgageNewsDaily “In its monthly e-magazine Foreclosure Report RealtyTrac takes a look at the current and potential impact of legislation designed to rescue the nation’s flood insurance program.  Within that legislation RealtyTrac says there may be looming another demonstration of the theory of unintended consequences. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) was created by an act ofRead more

MIKE SCHNEIDER | ASSOCIATED PRESS | Some of the nation’s most important events of the young century have happened in Florida or had a strong connection to the state, which is expected to surpass New York in population in 2014. Here is a list of 10 of them: 1. The 2000 presidential contest between George W. BushRead more

Christopher O’Donnell | Tampa Tribune | “Two years ago, Shanoah Washington’s home on Preston Street in the Melrose Mercy neighborhood was a gutted shell. Thieves had ripped out the air handler and plumbing. Gone, too, were windows, electrical wiring and most of the kitchen. The home attracted the attention of St. Petersburg City Council ChairmanRead more

By Josh Salman | Herald-Tribune “New home defaults throughout Southwest Florida have returned to the pace experienced before the market’s crash. Although the local court system continue to grapple with a backlog of 11,880 old foreclosure cases, the flow of loans becoming delinquent has slowed to a point that recalls 2006 — the height of last decade’sRead more

“Realty Trac has released new data from July showing the Florida counties with the highest foreclosure rate.” See slideshow here

By John Hielscher | Herald-Tribune | “A popular tax break that has saved struggling Southwest Florida homeowners millions of dollars is slated to expire at the end of this year. The tax deduction on forgiven mortgage debt has been available for the past seven years, one of a number of measures intended to ease financial pressure broughtRead more