ATTOM Data Solutions’ newly released Q3 2020 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report reveals that 1.6 percent of all homes in the U.S. are vacant, numbering 1,570,265 residential properties, with 7,960 or 3.7 percent of those vacant properties in the process of foreclosure, otherwise known as ‘zombie foreclosures.’
ATTOM’s most recent vacant properties analysis reports that while the number of properties in the process of foreclosure (215,886) in Q3 2020 is down 16 percent from Q2 2020 (258,024), the percentage of those properties that have been abandoned as zombie foreclosures is up from 3 percent in Q2 2020.
The report notes that despite the increase, as the federal government attempts to shield the housing market from an economic slide stemming from the Coronavirus pandemic, the 7,961 zombie foreclosure properties continue to represent a very small portion – just one in every 12,500 homes – of the nation’s 99.4 million residential properties.
According to ATTOM’s Q3 2020 vacant property and zombie foreclosure report, states where zombie-foreclosure rates exceed the national percentage are clustered in the Midwest and South. Those states include Kansas (15 percent, or one in seven, properties in the foreclosure process), Missouri (11.2 percent, or one in nine), Georgia (11 percent, or one in nine), Kentucky (10.7 percent, or one in nine) and Tennessee (10.3 percent, or one in 10).
The analysis also reports that states where the rates fall below the national level are mainly in the Northeast and West. Those states include Utah (1.1 percent, or one in 87 properties in the foreclosure process), Idaho (1.2 percent, or one in 84), New Jersey (1.6 percent, or one in 62), Colorado (1.8 percent, or one in 56) and California (2 percent, or one in 50).
ATTOM’s Q3 2020 vacant property and zombie foreclosure report notes that among the 158 metro areas analyzed with at least 100,000 residential properties in Q3 2020, the highest zombie-foreclosure rates are in Peoria, IL (16.4 percent of properties in the foreclosure process); Wichita, KS (15.3 percent); Kansas City, MO (13.4 percent); Omaha, NE (12.7 percent) and Cleveland, OH (12.6 percent).
The analysis notes that at the county level, among those counties with at least 500 properties in foreclosure, those with the highest zombie foreclosure rates include Cuyahoga County (Cleveland), OH (14.1 percent); Broome County (Binghamton), NY (10.9 percent); Onondaga County (Syracuse), NY (10 percent); Pinellas County (Clearwater), FL (8.5 percent) and Summit County (Akron), OH (7.8 percent).
The ATTOM report also cites the zip codes among those with at least 100 properties in foreclosure, where the zombie foreclosure rate exceeds 5 percent. Those zips remain concentrated in New York, Florida, Ohio and Illinois. Those zip codes with the top percentages include 44108, 44112 and 44105, all in Cleveland, OH, 61604 in Peoria, IL, and 13601 in Watertown, NY.
In this post, we take a deep data dive to unveil the complete list of the top 10 zombi‘fied’ zip codes, or the zip codes with the highest zombie foreclosure rates among those zip codes with at least 100 properties in foreclosure, along with the actual numbers of zombie properties.
Those zips include 44108 in Cleveland, OH (44.1 percent, 63 zombies); 44112 in Cleveland, OH (34.8 percent, 47 zombies); 44105 in Cleveland, OH (27.6 percent, 48 zombies); 61604 in Peoria, IL (25.7 percent, 29 zombies); 13601 in Watertown, NY (20.8 percent, 27 zombies); 44128 in Cleveland, OH (18.0 percent, 23 zombies); 44120 – Cleveland, OH (17.6 percent, 23 zombies); 12078 in Gloversville, NY (17.4 percent, 19 zombies); 60419 in Dolton, IL (16.5 percent, 17 zombies); and 14701 in Jamestown, NY (15.7 percent, 24 zombies).
ATTOM’s Q3 2020 vacant property and zombie foreclosure analysis also reports that the states with highest levels of vacant investor-owned homes include Indiana (8.5 percent), Kansas (6.8 percent), Ohio (6.5 percent), Rhode Island (6.3 percent) and Mississippi 6.1 percent).
The report notes the highest overall vacancy rates for all residential properties remain in Kansas (2.7 percent), Mississippi (2.7 percent), Oklahoma (2.7 percent), Tennessee (2.6 percent) and Indiana (2.5 percent). The lowest are in New Hampshire (0.4 percent), Delaware (0.4 percent), Vermont (0.5 percent), Idaho (0.6 percent) and Colorado (0.8 percent).
Want to learn more about vacant properties and zombie foreclosures in your market? Contact us to find out how!
