More than 1.5 million—or 1.5% of U.S. single-family homes and condos—were vacant in the fourth quarter, shows a newly released report from ATTOM Data Solutions. That marks a vast improvement, but so-called “zombie” foreclosures are still plaguing some housing markets.
Despite an ongoing housing shortage, several markets are still dealing with zombie foreclosures. These are homes that have been vacated by the owners and remain vacant while lingering in the foreclosure process. The percentage of zombie properties was at 2.96% in the fourth quarter, down from 3.2% in the third quarter.
“The fourth quarter of 2019 was a repeat of the third quarter when it came to properties abandoned by owners facing foreclosure. The scourge continued to fade,” says Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM Data Solutions. “One of the most visible signs of the housing market crash during the Great Recession keeps receding into the past. While pockets of zombie foreclosures remain, neighborhoods throughout the country are confronting fewer and fewer of the empty, decaying properties that were symbolic of the fallout from the housing market crash during the recession.”
Source: ATTOM Data Solutions
