Commercial foreclosure listings still pose a problem on the real estate market of Richmond, Virginia. However, the latest program from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) might help prevent the number of commercial foreclosures from further increasing in the metro area. The program, initially instituted in February of this year, will be expanded to cover more small businesses.

Foreclosure listings in Richmond might not be as high as in other metro areas of the U.S., but the region's real estate market was also unable to avoid the impact of the foreclosure crisis that hammered almost all areas of the country. The SBA program however, is being welcomed as positive news since it will help a big number of small businesses to refinance their mortgages that will mature at the end of 2012.

According to some real estate analysts, the program will help stave off further increases in commercial foreclosure listings in Virginia. The effort offers small business operators a chance to secure a more stable financing under the SBA 504 refinancing initiative, with holders of mortgages maturing before December 31, 2012 initially qualified under the program. Recently, news had emerged that the agency will extend the date to after December 31, 2012. Analysts have stated that the date change will help a lot of commercial borrowers avoid foreclosure, particularly those with loans approved during the economic downturn when values of real estate were inflated.

Analysts also believe that the change in the program will help prevent commercial foreclosure listings from rising further. According to sources, the SBA refinancing program is applicable to those whose businesses have been operating for at least 24 months. The debt that would be refinanced under the program should also be meant for owner-occupied properties.

Local market observers consider the program a great opportunity that will help address commercial foreclosure issues in Richmond and the whole state of Virginia which has also experienced increases in home foreclosures list. Eligible businesses have been encouraged to apply for a slot in the program which will reportedly be in effect until September of next year. Reports revealed that those who will qualify will be allowed to refinance as much as 90% of the current appraisal value of the property.

Commercial foreclosure listings in Richmond are not as bad when compared with other U.S. metro areas, but analysts stated that the program is still needed in the area and qualified businesses should take advantage of the opportunity, particularly as foreclosure numbers are expected to rise again this year.

Several areas in Illinois are starting to benefit from a federal government-supported program which involves buying a distressed property, renovating it and selling it to low income families. The program is financed by funds provided under the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) of the U.S. government.

The high number of foreclosed properties in the state, including those under Elgin foreclosure listings, has resulted in record number of abandoned and empty houses. These unoccupied properties are causing neighborhoods to deteriorate and become less safe. In an effort to counteract the impact of the empty properties on communities, the NSP has provided several areas of the state with funds to purchase the abandoned foreclosed houses.

Lake County was one of the areas that benefited from the program, receiving a total of $4.6 million to purchase properties under Illinois foreclosure lists and renovate them to be sold to low-income buyers. Under the program, buyers of these renovated properties should have earnings that are below 120% of the median income for the area of Chicago or around $63,000 for a single person-household and $90,000 annual income for a household with four members.

The distressed property flipping program was approved by the U.S. Congress in 2008, but it is only now starting to be taken seriously by local authorities, residents, and industry members. The slow response to the program was attributed to general skepticism over its success potential. Some housing market observers have criticized the effort, stating that it will hardly make a dent on the high levels of foreclosed properties around the state.

Critics of the initiative have stated that only 20 home foreclosures are scheduled to be rehabilitated in Lake County. This number, critics have argued, is insignificant, given that the county has over 11,000 foreclosure-related filings issued in 2010. In DuPage County, on the other hand, seven dwellings have been chosen to be renovated among 10,600 foreclosed properties recorded in the area in 2010.

Meanwhile, other areas are still not making any headway towards using the federal funds to purchase foreclosed homes. Cook County has received $28 million to be used on the distressed property flipping program, but as of this January 3,  the region has only used $450,000, making Cook County the second area with the lowest spending rate among all U.S. regions that received funding from NSP.

Search home foreclosures in Illinois cities:

• Chicago Foreclosure Listings
• Matteson Foreclosure Listings
• Midlothian Foreclosure Listings
• Aurora Foreclosure Listings
• Rolling Meadows Foreclosure Listings

While the number of foreclosed residential properties under bank and Fannie Mae home listings continues to rise, more property developers in Colorado are looking at multifamily projects as a way to earn profit and at the same time, stabilize local communities. In addition, these developers are trying to achieve further security by seeking insurance from the U.S. Federal Housing Administration (FHA).

Housing market data shows properties under Denver foreclosure lists and other foreclosure area listings continuing to climb, making apartment housing and multifamily projects more attractive to developers. However, majority of developers are finding it hard to finance these projects, hence the increased demand for FHA insurance.

To avoid the fate of properties under foreclosure lists in Colorado, developers of multifamily dwellings are making sure that their projects are securely financed by the government. This trend is exhibited in the rising number of FHA loans applications from multifamily developers, with applications for 2010 recording an almost 70% increase compared with the 2009 period.

Housing industry observers are predicting that as long as foreclosed homes under bank and Fannie Mae home listings are recording increased totals, apartment projects will be the focus of many property developers and applications for FHA loans will continue to rise until the next year. They reveal that developers have more protection if their projects are FHA-insured.

Under the FHA loan insurance program, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development is responsible for paying 99% of the balance for a defaulting borrower. FHA involvement also makes banks more willing to issue loans since they have less to lose should the project end up in foreclosure properties listings.

So far, 100 property developers in the area have submitted FHA loan insurance applications. The number is almost double the 2009 figures when a total of 59 applications were submitted, while 2008 had a total of 44. Agency-insured loans have a total worth of $490.2 million for the year which is significantly higher than the 2009 total of $291.4 million.

The figure represents a total of 5,556 apartment units being built in the area. These multi-housing units are expected to accommodate rising demands for apartments, particularly now that majority of residents have no inclination to purchase houses for fear of losing them to foreclosure bank or Fannie Mae home listings.

Search foreclosure lists in Colorado cities:

• Arvada Foreclosure Lists
• Parker Foreclosure Lists
• Littleton Foreclosure Lists
• Englewood Foreclosure Lists
• Westminster Foreclosure Lists

As the number of properties under bank foreclosure listings and listings in Freddie Mac foreclosures continues to rise in Salt Lake City, Utah, homeowners are getting even more desperate when it comes to finding ways of preventing their properties from getting lost. One example of such desperation is John Maxim.

To prevent his home from getting included in Salt Lake City foreclosure listings, Maxim reportedly asked for microloans at his blog. As a token of good faith, Maxim promised those who will donate that he will burn his Ford Escort automobile, film the burning and stream it live for the benefit of the people who will provide him with the much needed $15,000 that will be used to pay for his mortgage.

According to Maxim, he had messed up by falling behind in his mortgage loan payments and putting himself at risk of losing his home to foreclosure listings in Utah. He also revealed in his blog that the solicitation for loans was a last desperate effort to save his residence.

Maxim reportedly got enough money to cover his late payments, preventing his house from being one of the thousands of properties in the city that are under bank foreclosure listings and listings in Freddie Mac foreclosures. However, the Salt Lake City resident got into some legal troubles when he tried to fulfill his promise to his benefactors.

According to local reports, Maxim burned his car at Skull Valley as promised. But authorities consider the burning an illegal act, regardless of it being done out of desperation to save Maxim's home from becoming one of the real estate home foreclosures in the area. They also cited Maxim for not bringing enough water to douse the fire.

To make things worse, he was also required to pay at least $320 for the service provided by a tow truck that removed the car wreckage and had to post $555 of bail after he was arrested and jailed for 88 hours. Some members of the public who heard of Maxim's case admitted feeling sympathy towards him, particularly those who are also at risk of losing their homes to bank foreclosures or listings in Freddie Mac foreclosures.

Search foreclosure listings in Utah cities:

• West Jordan Foreclosure Listings
• Eagle Mountain Foreclosure Listings
• Provo Foreclosure Listings
• Sandy Foreclosure Listings
• Tooele Foreclosure Listings

While most areas of New York try to deal with the problem of expanding bank and Freddie Mac foreclosure listings, a big number of the state's residents have decided to stay away from purchasing residential properties and instead are looking for houses that they can rent.

According to some residents, instead of purchasing Long Island or Brooklyn home foreclosures or other types of residential properties, they find that it is more convenient for them to rent. They stated that renting a property gives them more time to consider any planned purchase and helps them avoid getting pressured into buying a house and ending up making a poor decision.

Those who favor renting over buying have explained that, with New York home foreclosures still posting record numbers, the housing market is still on a downturn and values of homes will continue to decline, making a purchase decision questionable at this stage. They also revealed that they would rather wait for the market to ride out the crisis before they would consider purchasing a property in the state.

Most areas of New York are seeing stronger rental markets and even though properties under bank and Freddie Mac foreclosure listings are way cheaper than ever before, majority of people looking for a home are still reluctant to take their chances for fear of ending up with a worthless piece of real estate.

The housing market seemed to be well attuned to residents' preference as evident in the rise of rental property inventories. For-rent single family dwellings have become hot commodities in most areas of New York, particularly in Long Island where rental properties have surged ahead of listings of home foreclosures in terms of growth.

A lot of home sellers have picked up the trend, with majority opting to rent out their properties instead of selling them at a loss. In some cases, properties are listed for sale and are also listed as rental places, all at the same time. Sellers who opt to rent out their houses have stated that allowing people to live in the property in exchange for a monthly payment also prevents the property from falling into disrepair. On the side of the buyers, a big percentage of them are more likely to peruse listings of for-rent properties rather than bank and Freddie Mac foreclosure listings.

There had been some debate whether the Huntsville Housing Authority in Alabama had used the stimulus funds from the federal government on neighborhoods that needed the funds most; or those areas that have suffered from high numbers of foreclosed properties under single and multi family home listings.

According to real estate market observers, half of the purchases made by local housing officials were for homes under Huntsville foreclosure listings, a move that is part of a larger plan to stabilize communities in the city hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis. The effort is particularly aimed at Huntsville's northwest neighborhoods where foreclosed properties account for two home sales out of five.

However, some market observers have stated that a number of purchases made by housing authorities were not from foreclosure listings in Alabama or Huntsville but from neighborhoods that are not suffering from high levels of foreclosure activities. According to them, purchases from these neighborhoods are some of the most expensive buys made by the housing authority.

Questions on how the local housing authority is spending financial aid from the federal government started circulating late in 2009 when a residence in Drummond Road at the south Huntsville area was purchased using federal funds. Analysts have questioned the move, citing the absence of significant numbers of properties falling under foreclosed single family and multi family home listings in the area.

They compared it to northwest Huntsville, where around 40% of home sales came from lists of foreclosures for sale. In the past year-long period, analysts have argued that 109 homes sales out of 278 in northwest Huntsville were foreclosed dwellings. The purchase of the Drummond property for an alleged tag price of over $153,000 resulted in protests and questions from some residents who argued that south Huntsville does not need any stimulus fund injection and that the money could have been used on other areas that need the funds more.

In response to the questions, officials from the housing authority have explained that the agency is purchasing foreclosed properties under single and multi family home listings from various neighborhoods. They stated that the protest generated by the south Huntsville purchase was due to miscommunication and that the particular property will not be converted into a public dwelling but will be resold.

With the high number of foreclosed properties and federal homes for sale continuing to drag the whole U.S. housing market down, the administration of President Barack Obama has stepped up and announced a plan designed to arrest the problem and save millions of homeowners from the foreclosure crisis.

The announcement garnered mixed reactions from local markets, including Nebraska. The state is no different from other U.S. areas in terms of foreclosure problems. Omaha bank owned homes and foreclosures remain at almost the same level despite government mitigation efforts, including the tax credit initiative, local realtors have revealed.

Despite the fact that some analysts are reluctant to believe that the latest government effort will solve the problem of foreclosures and bank owned homes in Nebraska, they readily admitted that it is a relief to know that the government is doing something to address the crisis.

The President himself has admitted that the current plan will not solve the problem of high numbers of foreclosures and bank owned houses, but it could make a difference, particularly for homeowners who are responsibly paying their mortgages but are being affected by the declining values of properties.

The administration's latest plan involves a tag price of $75 billion. According to the government, it could help prevent around nine million households from losing their properties to bank foreclosures and federal homes for sale transactions. In a speech delivered at a Mesa high school, Obama stated that the plan will not end foreclosure overnight, but it could put a lid on the worst effects of the housing crisis.

The plan centers on helping homeowners whose loan debts are higher than the value of their homes. The President stated that the latest effort is aimed at homeowners who acted in a responsible way but were dragged down by economic and market woes. The money reserved for the program will be used to provide mortgage firms with incentives to lower interest rates and will be used to provide refinancing options to homeowners.

The legislation that will give effect to the program will also aim to provide bankruptcy courts with the power to modify mortgage terms and prevent homeowners from losing their properties to federal homes for sale and foreclosure auctions. The new program is set to be launched in two weeks time.

Reverend Jesse Jackson, a civil-rights activist and former presidential candidate, has called on churchgoers at the Friendship Baptist Church to help trim down foreclosure house listings by opposing predatory lending.

He urged them to join a national campaign to challenge banks and their lending practices which he called predatory and greedy. He called on people at the Friendship Baptist in Winston-Salem, North Carolina to join in the national initiative that aims to make changes on the banking systems and push for the renegotiation of bank loan terms.

According to industry experts, the increase in foreclosure house listings started due to the collapse of subprime lending. They also cited some studies that showed that banks have disregarded some of their lending rules and provided loans to people with questionable credit background.

Experts said that the collapse in the subprime lending led to the crisis in the financial system. Some are questioning the decision of the federal government to bailout the banks which they believed contributed to the current foreclosure crisis.

Meanwhile, Friendship Baptist Church pastor Reverend Stacey Frazier explained that he requested Jackson to give a speech before his congregation. He said that many members of the congregation lost their homes to foreclosure and with the unemployment rate increasing rapidly, many more are expected to go into foreclosures in the coming months.

Frazier said that he hopes Jackson would be able to challenge and motivate his congregation to allow them to recover from the impact of the economic and foreclosure crisis.

Recent market data showed that the number of foreclosure properties in North Carolina drop by 38 percent in the first six months of this year. However, the good news brought about by the significant decline in foreclosure rate was offset by the drastic rise in foreclosure activity last June.

June foreclosure rate rose by 23 percent compared with May figures. This brought the total number of foreclosure homes in the state to 3.175. On the other hand, a drop of 26 percent was posted for the first half compared with the last six months of 2008.

Industry experts said that the rise in the number of foreclosure house listings due to unemployment is prevalent not just in North Carolina but also across the country. And more foreclosures are expected as long as the unemployment problem remains unsolved.

It seems that loan modification is turning out to be a popular method of curtailing foreclosure home listing in Saint Louis, Missouri.

Recent market data showed that so far, about 5,000 residential homes have been foreclosed by mortgage lenders and banks in 2009. However, a significant number of borrowers were able to save their properties by convincing their lenders to reduce their monthly mortgage payments into affordable rates.

Industry experts said that loan modification is becoming popular and lenient in the Saint Louis region. But they cautioned that the process still continues to frustrate many borrowers, with a great number of them being rejected and ending in foreclosure.

Most homeowners would say that their problems started when they lost their jobs. However, given no choice, many of these homeowners would take another job that pays $1,500 a month, a considerable reduction from their previous salaries. Some homeowners would find their properties are worth less than their total mortgage and so would walk away from their properties and leave it for banks to place them on foreclosure home listing.

A typical loan modification process involves reducing the monthly payment to affordable rates. In Saint Louis, loan modifications are becoming common due to the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) of the Obama Administration.

The program provides counseling to distressed homeowners as well as financial incentives to mortgage lenders. So far, about 500,000 were in the trial modification process. Normally, homeowners would have their payments reduced during the trial period, which is three months. The banks would then agree to lower monthly mortgage payments and interest rates for at least 5 years.

In some cases, borrowers would be required to give three regular monthly payments before the rates could be lowered. Some interest rates are reduced by about 2 percent.

Since June to September, the number of people who participated in the loan modification program has reached 100,000 every month. However, in September, homeowners who availed of the program accounted for 16 percent of the total number of delinquent mortgages.

Industry experts said that there are indications that loan modifications has greatly help the city of Saint Louis trim down the number of properties on foreclosure home listing.

The way Philadelphia foreclosure listings are being contained by the city and state governments is being studied by the Obama administration for its plan of further improving its foreclosure prevention program.

Federal officials are considering using part of the $50 billion allotted for the loan modification program to help jobless homeowners keep their homes.

Elizabeth Warren, chairperson of the Congressional Oversight Panel which oversees the Troubled Asset Relief Program, has been asking the Treasury Department to examine the use of some TARP funds to provide bridge loans to homeowners who have been laid off in recent months. She suggested also that the program does not charge interest until the homeowners get another job.

COP member Richard Neiman explained that recent foreclosures are no longer caused by subprime or other types of risky home loans, but by unemployment. He added that the rising number of prime mortgages getting foreclosed is an indication of the worsening impact of unemployment.

In September, job losses increased to 9.8 percent, pushing up the national unemployment rate to 9.8 percent, a 26-year record high. Since December 2007, a total of 7.2 million workers have been laid off and the jobless rate has doubled.

Administration officials have been looking at the program that has been effectively containing Philadelphia foreclosure listings and other listings throughout Pennsylvania under the state Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program.

HEMAP was established by Pennsylvania state officials in 1984 to help jobless homeowners survive while they look for jobs. The unemployed homeowners who qualify under the program are given loans with a term of two or three years, depending on the economic conditions and the financial situations of the homeowners. The borrowers are not required to pay the loans until they get their next jobs and earn enough that enables them to pay their monthly home loan payments and utility bills.

John Dodds, head of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project, said that helping the unemployed while they look for work prevents unnecessary foreclosures that cause neighborhood deterioration.

According to reports, several officials of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department have met with state officials of Pennsylvania and discussed the HEMAP and its viability as a nationwide program.

In addition, officers of the Philadelphia Legal Assistance Center explained that the HEMAP program is provided only to qualified unemployed, such as persons who have been laid off recently and who are likely to find another job.