on Thursday that found that nearly 12% of U.S. homeowners were in arrears on their loans or in foreclosure. The numbers were even worse in battered states such as California, where 13% of homeowners were behind on their payments, and Florida, where 20% were late.<----That will keep rising.
It was the highest level of distress ever recorded by the trade group, whose numbers go back to 1972. <---That means no historical precedence.
The Obama administration’s plan to stave off foreclosures could fall flat in California, where nearly one-third of mortgage holders are underwater on their loans — many of them by amounts that would disqualify them for government-sponsored refinancing.
The problem is likely to be especially acute in areas like the Inland Empire, where homes have lost more than 40% of their value in the last year and nearly half the homeowners owe more on their loans than the properties are worth.
Real Estate is no longer local when you have numbers like these.