Top 10 Zombified Metros in Fourth Quarter 2024
Industry Update
November 1, 2024
Source: ATTOM
According to ATTOM’s newly released Q4 2024 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report, approximately 1.4 million (1,355,909) residential properties in the United States are vacant. This accounts for 1.3 percent of the total housing stock, or one in every 77 homes nationwide. This figure is nearly unchanged from the previous quarter and has increased only slightly compared to last year.
ATTOM’s latest vacant properties analysis also reveals that in the fourth quarter of this year, 215,601 residential properties in the U.S. are currently undergoing foreclosure. This represents a 3.3 percent decrease from the third quarter of 2024 and a 32.8 percent decline compared to the fourth quarter of 2023.
The report notes that approximately 7,100 properties are classified as zombie foreclosures—pre-foreclosure homes abandoned by their owners—in the fourth quarter of 2024. This number is slightly higher than in the previous quarter but represents a 20.2 percent decrease compared to the same time last year.
Also, according to ATTOM’s Q4 2024 vacant property and zombie foreclosure report, the latest count of zombie homes continues a long-standing trend, with these properties currently representing only a small fraction of the nation’s total housing stock—about one in every 14,591 homes across the U.S. This ratio is nearly unchanged from one in 14,776 in the previous quarter and significantly lower than one in 11,412 in the fourth quarter of last year, marking one of the lowest levels seen in the past five years. Although zombie foreclosures can attract vandalism and contribute to neighborhood decline, they have little to no effect on most local housing markets. This situation is part of the broader, enduring impact of a housing market boom that has been ongoing for 13 years.
On a more granular level, the number of zombie properties has increased quarterly in 30 states, typically by fewer than 20 homes. In contrast, the number has either declined or remained stable in 20 states. The largest percentage decreases from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the fourth quarter of 2024, in states that had at least 50 zombie homes a year ago, are as follows: Connecticut saw an 87 percent drop (from 100 to 13), Iowa experienced a 76 percent decrease (from 281 to 68), North Carolina decreased by 73 percent (from 195 to 53), New Mexico declined by 72 percent (from 81 to 23), and Oklahoma fell by 71 percent (from 197 to 58).
In this post, we take a deep dive into the data behind ATTOM’s Q4 2024 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report, to uncover the top 10 U.S. metros, with at least 100,000 residential properties, that have the greatest number of zombie foreclosures in Q4 2024. Those metros include: Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL (772 zombie foreclosures); New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA (754 zombie foreclosures); Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI (483 zombie foreclosures); Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (331 zombie foreclosures); Cleveland-Elyria, OH (201 zombie foreclosures); Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY (183 zombie foreclosures); Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD (178 zombie foreclosures); Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL (176 zombie foreclosures); Jacksonville, FL (170 zombie foreclosures); Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY (111 zombie foreclosures).
For full report, please click the source link above.