Fastest-Growing States in West, South

Nevada regained the title of fastest-growing state with its population increasing by 2.9 percent to 2.6 million through July 2007.

Nevada had held that title for 19 years in a row before being dethroned by Arizona last year. Arizona is the second-fastest-growing stat,e according to the current estimate, with a population increase of 2.8 percent to 6.3 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual estimate of state population changes.

Florida saw the sharpest fall off in population growth. Florida grew 1.07 percent, only slightly faster than the U.S. growth rate of 0.96 percent and the slowest growth rate in the state since 1990, making it the 19th fastest-growing state.

The only two states in the country to lose population were Michigan and Rhode Island. Michigan lost 30,500 residents, a 0.3 percent decline.

The 10 fastest-growing states in order are:

1. Nevada
2. Arizona
3. Utah
4. Idaho
5. Georgia
6. North Carolina
7. Texas
8. Colorado
9. Wyoming
10. South Carolina

Source: Realtor magazin online

Foreclosure Rate Improves Over Prior Month

Foreclosures declined 10 percent in November compared with October, but were up nearly 68 percent compared with November 2006, according to RealtyTrac, a foreclosure sales and data company.

"This could indicate that foreclosure activity has topped out for the year, but the true test of whether this ceiling will hold will come at the beginning of next year" when a seasonal increase tends to occur and rates on more mortgages are to rise, RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio said in a statement.

The national foreclosure rate in November was one filing for every 617 households.

Nevada continued to register the nation's top state foreclosure rate for the 11th straight month. A total of 6,694 foreclosure filings were reported in the state for the month, up 1 percent from the previous month and up 167 percent from November 2006.

Florida's November foreclosure rate of one foreclosure filing for every 282 households ranked second highest among the states.

The remaining states with top-10 foreclosure rates were in this order: Ohio, Colorado, California, Michigan, Georgia, Arizona, Indiana, and Illinois.

Source: RealtyTrac (12/19/07)

Subprime Woes Hit Buyers With Good Credit

The assumption that the subprime mortgage crisis is limited to buyers with poor credit is mistaken, according to an analysis prepared for The Wall Street Journal, which examined more than $2.5 million in subprime loans made since 2000.

In 2005, the peak year of the subprime boom, borrowers with credit scores high enough to qualify for a normal loan received 55 percent of all subprime mortgages, the study says.

The study by First American LoanPerformance, a San Francisco research firm, says the proportion rose even higher by the end of 2006, to 61 percent.

"Brokers and agents were telling" borrowers with high credit scores for the past several years "that it was OK" to get subprime loans, "and borrowers were wanting to take on more debt," says Mark Carrington, director, analytical sales and support at First American LoanPerformance.

Analysts conclude that credit-worthy borrowers holding subprime loans may be more likely than traditional subprime borrowers to afford to double whammy of rising rates and declining values.

The data could explain why nearly 80 percent of the borrowers with subprime loans have continued to keep their loan payments current, according to some analysts, and suggests that the crisis won't deepen as much as some fear.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Rick Brooks and Ruth Simon (12/03/2007)