Foreclosures in Coconino County are happening at a rate less than a third of that in Maricopa County according NPR’s interactive map accompanying this story. That’s good news for us in Flagstaff although our market depends to a great extent on the health of the real estate market in Maricopa County, whose awful weather provides us with second homeowners, when they can afford a second home. The National Public Radio interactive map is based on data from Realty Track, whose data I've had my doubts about, but, as a comparison tool between counties, I think it works.

During the first three months of this year, the largest share of foreclosures shifted from subprime loans to prime loans, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The change to prime loans is the result of the growing numbers of unemployed who are being caught up in the foreclosure process. When a subprime borrower becomes delinquent because of a hefty payment increase, the fix often involves lowering the interest rate to its original level. Homeowners who lose their jobs are more difficult to keep from foreclosure than subprime borrowers who still have their jobs.  Those problems, and some possible solutions, are discussed in detail today in a Washington Post article: Unemployment Spike Compounds Foreclosure Crisis.

For a weekly list of scheduled foreclosure sales, and actual foreclosure results, see my blog on Active Rain.