Many of our South Florida readers are probably fans of the different zombie television shows and movies that have been so prevalent in recent years, but they are probably tired of another type of zombie: “zombie” foreclosure homes. These are homes that are going through the foreclosure process, but the process isn’t yet complete. However, even as the process plays out, the former resident of the home has already moved out. With no one living at the property to maintain it, and with the bank lacking ownership until the foreclosure process concludes, these homes stand vacant and unmaintained: they become “zombie” homes.
But, according to a recent article, South Florida residents have no need to panic and head for the bunker. The recent article noted that the number of zombie foreclosure homes in the South Florida area declined significantly in the period of time from July through September of this year.
The report indicated that the tri-county area of Broward County, Miami-Dade County and Palm Beach County had a grand total of 866 zombie homes in the third quarter of this year. That may seem like a lot, but consider this: that number is down a whopping 76 percent from the number from the same period of time in 2014.
Significant problems with mortgages obviously led to most of these zombie homes sitting in their current state of existence. While this sharp decline in the number of zombie homes is most welcome, the fact remains that there are still many people in the South Florida area who are dealing with financial challenges that prevent them from making their monthly mortgage payment. But, let us hope that this recent decline is the start of a new prolonged trend toward greater stability for those people who are on the brink of foreclosure.
Source: Sun Sentinel, “‘Zombie’ foreclosure homes on the decline in South Florida,” Paul Owers, Oct. 7, 2015
