While the worst of the Nevada real estate market collapse brought on by the financial crisis may be long over, a recent study shows that Nevada still has a higher foreclosure rate than the majority of other states. Unsurprisingly, larger states have a larger total number of active foreclosures. But for the first quarter of 2019, Nevada ranked near the top for the per capita foreclosure rate.
Nevada Foreclosure Study
The study, conducted by ATTOM Data, reviewed foreclosure statistics in all 50 states before crunching the numbers. The study considers the number of housing units per each foreclosure in a state as its metric. Nevada had over 2,000 foreclosed homes on the market in the first part of 2019 out of a total number of 1.2 million housing units. That puts Nevada’s foreclosure rate of 604 at 9th place among all other states.
Despite being placed on the higher end of the list, Nevada still has nearly half the foreclosure rate of the state at the top of the list: New Jersey. The Garden State is the frontrunner with a foreclosure rate of 333, followed by Delaware, Maryland, Florida, and Illinois. On the other end of the spectrum sits North Dakota. With only 52 foreclosed homes on the market in the first quarter of 2019, North Dakota had a foreclosure rate of 6,936. Rounding out the states with the fewest foreclosures per capita are South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, and Vermont.
Despite coming in high on the list, the news isn’t all bad for Nevada. Compared to the first quarter of 2018, the foreclosure rate in Nevada has dropped more than 14 percent. That is roughly equal to the fourteen percent drop experienced nationwide. Only a handful of states like West Virginia and Hawaii saw an increase in the foreclosure rate year over year.
Nevada Foreclosure Protection
At any given time, there are plenty of foreclosed homes on the market in Nevada. But if you are set on keeping your home even in the face of foreclosure, you have options. There are several commonly used foreclosure protection methods that you may be able to rely on and stay in your home. They include:
- Bankruptcy – Filing for bankruptcy will automatically stop your creditor’s efforts to collect from you. That includes putting a halt to foreclosure efforts.
- Foreclosure Mediation – A recently adopted program from the United States Bankruptcy Courts allows for mediation between homeowners and lenders in lieu of a bankruptcy filing. During the course of these mediations, any foreclosure proceedings are put on hold. If the mediation is successful, the homeowners and lenders will renegotiate the terms of the loan to give the homeowner a chance to keep it.
- Loan Modification – Another option that is available during bankruptcy or even prior to filing is a loan modification. A loan modification involves the lender agreeing to ease the terms of the mortgage loan in order to keep the homeowner from losing their home. This can include lowered interest rates and even forgiving missed payments.
- Short Sale – If there is no feasible way to hold on to your home, the bank may agree to let you sell it in a short sale while letting you off the hook for any deficiency balance you may owe.
There are ways to keep your home even if you face the risk of foreclosure in Nevada. Contact Vohwinkel Law to hear about your options.
