Business & Tech

Fairfield County Towns Among Highest U.S. Foreclosure Rates for $1M+ Homes in 2012

Darien, New Canaan and Westport were in the top 10 in the nation, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing figures provided by Zillow.

Towns in Fairfield County were among those in the United States with the highest foreclosure rates for homes valued at more than $1 million from January through October of 2012, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

The report also said that the market for $1 million-plus homes in the Stamford area shrank by 20.5 percent when comparing the first half of 2012 with the first half of 2011.

Similarly, for "New York" (with the geographical area for that location undefined), the shrinkage was 13.5 percent, according to a chart accompanying the article. In the same time period, Houston's market in that price range rose 39.5 percent and Jacksonville, FL rose 32.8 percent.

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New Canaan, according to the report had the highest foreclosure rate in the U.S. in that time period. Darien and Westport, which each had 17 foreclosures, came in fifth and seventh on the list, respectively.

According to a report in the Journal, citing figures provided by Zillow, New Canaan had 25 foreclosures on homes valued $1 million to $2 million from January through Oct. 1 last year.

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According to the report, nearly 2,000 million-dollar homes in the U.S. went through foreclosure during the same period. That's down 33 percent from 2011 and by more than half from 2010, according to the report, citing figures from Zillow.

Interestingly, the decrease in foreclosures on $1 million+ homes has resulted in a shortage of stock in the past year. This in turn has resulted in a sense of urgency, even anxiety, among buyers and, in some areas, the return of "bidding wars" on million-dollar homes, according to the report.

Growing buyer confidence, strong foreign demand, lower mortgage rates and more realistic sellers also helped propel the $1 million+ home market to a  rebound in 2012, according to the report, titled "Luxury Snaps Back."

Nationally, sales of $1 million+ homes rose by 9% in the first nine months of 2012, compared with the same period one year ago, according to the Wall Street Journal report, citing figures from DataQuick MDA.

For more check out the Wall Street Journal report.


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