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Economy
Hawaii Foreclosures Rising Home Mortgages Fall Behind
Feb 20th
The national Mortgage Bankers Association said yesterday that 7,535 residential property loans, or 4.5 percent of the loans statewide, were in foreclosure at the end of last year in Hawai’i, and that an additional 12,182 mortgages representing 7.3 percent of the market were delinquent but not yet in foreclosure. That means nearly 12 percent of Hawai’i homes are in foreclosure or threatened by foreclosure.
For the first time in almost three years, the number of homeowners falling behind on their loans nationwide is declining. The drop means the number of people losing their homes will start to fall. But some pain from the crisis is sure to persist. Because millions of people are already in foreclosure, deeply discounted houses will put pressure on home prices for years.
The problem is not expected to disappear this year for Hawaii, which saw foreclosures ramp up much later than most other states, said Daren Blomquist, marketing communications manager for RealtyTrac, which tracks nationwide foreclosures.”REOs were up 58 percent from December and 1,013 percent from January 2009,” Blomquist said. “This means that more Hawaii homeowners who went into default failed to get out of it. The most painful foreclosure category went up quite a bit in Hawaii.”
Foreclosure auction notices, a step where the homeowner can still save their home, decreased 31 percent from December but rose 241 percent from January 2009, he said.A triple-digit, year-over-year increase in statewide foreclosures in January left Hawaii with the highest back-to-back monthly total since 2005.
Despite a 15.1 percent dip in foreclosures from December, Hawaii foreclosures rose 286.4 percent in January to 1,302 filings from the year-ago 337, according to a report released today by RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties.
In comparison, national foreclosures increased 15 percent to 315,716.
Percentage of mortgage loans past due
Honolulu Hawaii is the Best Place to Live
Nov 17th
Honolulu Hawaii is the Best Place to Live
We have certainly had a lot of bad news lately. Honolulu consistently ranks in the “Best” lists among major magazines, however.
Fortune Magazine rated Honolulu as the #67 best place to live in 2009.
It also rated it as the one of the best places for a long life.
Business Week listed Honolulu at Number 1 in the US from a study done by Mercer Consulting.
No. 28: Honolulu – U.S.
Mercer score: 103.1
2007 rank: No. 27
GDP: $13.86 trillion (2007 est.)
Population: 303,824,646 (total country); 380,000 (total city)
Life expectancy: 78.14 years
A handy calculator shows you how to figure out the difference between where you live and Honolulu. For example, if you make $50,000 in Los Angeles, you will need to make $53,987 since the cost of living is 8% higher. Here’s the catch: employers in Honolulu typically pay 1.9% less than employers in Los Angeles. That explains a lot, doesn’t it? Anyone that has tried to get a job here knows that pay rates are typically lower. My guess is because of the sheer number of retail and tourism jobs, which tend to bring the median wage down. The closest similar income I found is DC – Washington. Even San Francisco costs less than Hawaii.
If you want to get a good comparison of Hawaii home costs (PDF) compared to the mainland, see Paul Brewbaker’s (Senior Vice President and Chief Economist with Bank of Hawaii), reports. They are excellent. He has data on domestic and Japanese arrivals, employment, tourism, inflation, growth (including Honolulu’s CPI or Consumer Price Index) and forecasts. Good stuff.
Unfortunately, the number of bankruptcies in Hawaii hit a 3-year high last year, according to the Star Bulletin. Foreclosures are up as well, with the majority apparently being held by Countrywide Home Loans, particularly on the Leeward and Ewa areas. It’s going to get worse before it gets better, it would seem. Mortgage delinquencies peaked again in the 3rd qtr 2009, but the pace of growth slowed for 3rd straight period.
Now is a great time to visit your local library, bookstores (don’t forget Jelly’s Honolulu or in Aiea!) and parks. Go camping! Start a blog! Get in shape. Stay positive, and Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff.
Hiking in Hawaii
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Missing in the Chicago Area. Contact Angel Sanchez at FB by Clicking on the photo
- Missing in the Chicago Area. Contact Angel Sanchez at FB by Clicking on the photo
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