Buy foreclosure houses in Ohio, a state that posted more than 101,000 foreclosure filings in 2009 and whose foreclosure rate of more than two percent put it 12th in a ranking of the most foreclosure-battered states in 2009.
In Central Ohio, foreclosures also climbed up each year over the last ten years, accumulating a total of 99,370 foreclosures since 2000 and representing about one foreclosure posting for every six housing units in the region.
Based on documents from state courts, foreclosure filings in the counties of Franklin, Delaware, Union, Licking, Fairfield, Madison, Pickaway and Morrow rose by more than three percent in 2009 to 13,900 filings from 13,480 filings in 2008.
Statewide, foreclosure filings rose by 1.5 percent to 66,453 in the first three quarters of 2009 from 65,452 filings during the same nine-month period in 2008. The filings count by the Ohio Supreme Court for 2009 was lower than other estimates because data from some counties were not available. This meant that there were more foreclosures than counted and there are more opportunities for investors to buy foreclosure houses and land foreclosures in Ohio.
According to Columbus bankruptcy lawyer Larry McClatchey, the pace of foreclosure in Ohio will not slow down significantly if the employment situation is not improved first.
The most foreclosure-battered county in Ohio in 2009 was Huron County, where one foreclosure was filed for every 33 housing units in the area. The foreclosure rate marked a 67-percent increase from 2008 and a stunning 1,272-percent increase three years ago.
Charlene Watkins, a housing counseling specialist for WSOS Community Action Commission, said that single-family and condo foreclosures have been increasing in Huron for the past four years. According to her, the primary causes were loss of income, increased monthly payments for adjustable-rate mortgage borrowers, medical problems and divorces.
Last year, pay cuts and plant closures worsened economic conditions in the county. In the first quarter last year, Huron County posted the highest jobless rate in Ohio. It posted the second highest in April, the second highest in May and remained among the most battered by job losses ever since.
According to Watkins, not all Ohio counties suffered high foreclosure rates. Sandusky County and Ottawa County had much lower rates than Huron, with rates of one in 67 and one in 66, respectively.
Watkins advised distressed homeowners to contact WSOS Community Action for help or else their homes would become easy targets for people who buy foreclosure houses for a living.