Florida’s Foreclosure Rate is Tied for the Highest – What’s Behind It?
Bottom Line: We’re all aware that Florida’s housing market has changed considerably over the past couple of years as we’ve seen Florida’s housing market progress from a two-year pandemic induced frenzy to somewhat sluggish but seemingly stable most recently. Entering 2025 many have had questions about what the outlook for our housing market looks like. That’s why when ATTOM Data Solutions produced a report showing Florida with the highest foreclosure rate in the country to end 2024, it caught my attention. Let’s break this down starting with the nuts and bolts.
- Florida was tied with New Jersey for the highest foreclosure rate in the country
- One in 3,739 homes is currently in some stage of the foreclosure process
- Overall foreclosure activity statewide declined by nearly 6% year-over-year in December
- The top three counties for foreclosure filings were Miami Dade, Broward and Palm Beach
As always context is key. When you hear Florida has the highest foreclosure rate in the country, it might sound alarm bells. However, when you hear Florida’s foreclosure rate actually fell year-over-year that sounds encouraging. Aside from the trend, what matters most is volume.
As mentioned, while Florida’s foreclosure rate is tied for the highest in the country, it stands at 1 foreclosure for every 3,739 homes. How does that rate compare? For the sake of comparison...at the peak of the housing crisis during the Great Recession, Florida peaked with 1 in 32 homes in foreclosure...a rate that’s about 117 times greater than the current rate. Now, Florida’s lowest foreclosure rate – which occurred in 2020 when a brief moratorium on foreclosures went into effect due to the pandemic – was 1 in 6,240 homes. So, Florida’s current foreclosure rate is about half as good as the lowest rate, but that is very much at a sustainable rate.
One of the challenges Floridians have faced over the past year is that as prices have stagnated and the market has slowed is that those who’ve had personal financial challenges – in some cases brought about by higher property insurance costs, HOA dues and special assessments, for example – may not have had the opportunity to sell the property for a profit. In an active and appreciating market distressed owners are often able to sell as opposed to being subjected to a foreclosure process. That appears to be the reason for rates having come off of the lows of a few years ago. But with that said the current rate, regardless of how Florida ranks nationally, isn’t at a concerning level. If we continue to see a decline in the foreclosure rate as we have most recently the overall market will remain stable.