Elyse Cherry Publishes Op-ed on Housing In Philadelphia Inquirer
National statistics show that home foreclosures are declining; but not so for some Philadelphia neighborhoods, CEO Elyse Cherry said in her recent opinion piece in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
While overall home values across Philadelphia have climbed a full third since 2000, home sales prices have actually fallen 5% when adjusted for inflation in so-called "middle" neighborhoods, where values range from 50% below the median price of $96,000 to 50% above. Underwater mortgages, an early warning sign of impending foreclosure issues, are a particularly acute problem for minority home owners, many of whom live in neighborhoods where foreclosure rates remain stubbornly high.
"The bottom line is that it's in everyone's interest to stabilize communities affected by foreclosure. People in foreclosure come from all walks of life. They are schoolteachers and firefighters, sales clerks and auto mechanics, veterans and parents of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan," Elyse wrote.