The Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach metro area remains on the bleeding edge of the nation's still-critical foreclosure problem, according to new rankings from the Center for Housing Policy. It has, by far, the highest rate of homes in foreclosure -- but the rest of the state is not far behind.
In the 13 metros with the highest percentages of homes in foreclosure, only one is not in Florida. It's number two.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach 17.8 Vineland-Millville-Bridgeton, NJ 16.6 Port St. Lucie 15.8 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater 15.6 Palm Coast 15.0 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach 14.9 Orlando-Kissimmee 14.9 Lakeland-Winter Haven 14.8 Ocala 14.5 Punta Gorda 14.1 Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice 13.8 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville 13.3 Cape Coral-Fort Myers 13.2
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach also leads in the rate of mortgages that are at least 90 days overdue: 22.3 percent, more than one in five.
The figures for September were released as Florida Realtors were reporting significant gains in existing home sales in November, a trend that includes higher home prices and pending sales.