Website lists York among nation's foreclosure hotspots
As far as Top Ten lists are concerned, this is a pretty unflattering distinction.
York County tied with Mobile, Ala., for its percentage of increase in foreclosures in 2010, earning it the ninth spot on list of 10 "foreclosure hotspots" compiled by CNNMoney.com.
The mortgage defaults increased by 28 percent last year in both locations, which means one in 56 homes was listed in York, according to the report.
The online magazine highlighted York and others as examples of "unexpected cities" with the fastest-growing rates out of 100 "worst-hit" places.
The report said York's population growth has been "unusually robust" but not hot enough to send home prices "out of control," like they were in hard-hit
places such as Las Vegas.
With affordable home prices and job losses fairly moderate during the recession, "it's something of a surprise that the foreclosure problem has been as severe in York," the report said.
Surprising? While the ranking might be unexpected to the online magazine, local housing professionals and those who manage foreclosure and sheriff sale filings are probably less surprised.
Staff at both the prothonotary's office and the sheriff's office have said the increases are overwhelming, and the Housing Alliance of York has also reported a booming caseload of people looking for counseling about foreclosure.
It's not clear which numbers CNNMoney.com compared to arrive at 28 percent. According to data provided by the county, sheriff's sales increased by 18.7 percent when 2009 is compared with 2010.
In 2010, the sheriff's office sold 811 properties, compared to 683 sold in 2009.
The total number of sale cases in 2010 -- which also includes foreclosures for homes that were listed for auction but removed when homeowners were able to make payment arrangements -- was 1,821, breaking the record set in 2009 with 1,605 cases.
Prothonotary Pam Lee said the foreclosure filings -- the initial notices of default processed by her office -- actually decreased from 2,142 in 2009 to 2,080 last year.
Between 2007 and 2008, the number of foreclosure filings grew by 33 percent, from 1,281 to 1,702.
Lee said one typically thinks of areas such as Las Vegas and Florida when comparing "hardest-hit" places, but York has posted a significant increase in foreclosures.
"I think we had a building boom and people were encouraged to spend beyond their means," she said. "I just hate to see our area get a bad reputation."
Other hotspots: Capturing number 1 on the online list was Spartanburg, S.C. With a population of 287,000, the city saw foreclosures increase by 228 percent last year, according to the online report.
Others on the list were Albuquerque, N.M., Myrtle Beach, S.C., Savannah, Ga., Charlotte, N.C., Tulsa, Okla., New Orleans, La., and Virginia Beach, Va.
The report can be viewed at http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/real_estate/1102/gallery.latest_foreclosure_hotspots/9.html.
--Reach Christina Kauffman at 505-5436, ckauffman@yorkdispatch.com, or follow her on Twitter at @dispatchbizwiz.
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