New Jersey and Florida account for almost half of the 50 U.S. counties whose housing markets are most vulnerable to the economic effects of the coronavirus, an Attom Data Solutions report said.
Attom ranked 483 counties across the country based on the percentage of housing units receiving a foreclosure notice in the fourth quarter, the number of underwater properties in each county and the percentage of local wages required to pay for major homeownership expenses.
Thirty-six of the top 50 most vulnerable counties had median home prices in the $160,000-to-$300,000 range, the report noted.
Of the 10 most vulnerable counties, six are in New Jersey, including Sussex at No. 1 and Warren at No. 2.
"It looks like the Northeast is more at risk than other areas," Todd Teta, Attom's chief product officer, said in a press release. "As we head into the spring home buying season, the next few months will reveal how severe the impact will be."
Among the New Jersey counties that would be most affected, five are in the New York metropolitan area: Bergen, Essex, Passaic, Middlesex and Union. However, of the four counties in New York that Attom considered to be most vulnerable, only Rockland was in proximity to New York City.
Zana Tomich is co-founding partner of Dalton & Tomich PLC, based in Detroit, and provides outside general counsel services to her clients, including experience representing CPA firms.
Ben Madick is the Co-founder and CEO of Matic Insurance, a digital P&C insurance marketplace. Founded in 2014, Matic’s insurance platform has over 40 A-rated home and auto carriers, as well as distribution partners in industries ranging from mortgage origination and servicing to banking, real estate, auto companies, and more. Prior to Matic, Ben co-founded MQMR, a firm that performs compliance risk management and audit support to mortgage lenders and banks.
Brian C. Tate is president and CEO of the Innovative Payments Association.
A native Marylander, Brian is a graduate of the Howard University School of Law and is licensed to practice in the state of Maryland and the U.S. Supreme Court. In addition, Brian has an M.A. in political management from The George Washington University, and a B.A. in political science from King's College (Pa.). Brian was also a White House intern during the Clinton administration in 1996.
After graduating from law school in 2004, Brian first started working in the financial services sector when he began working as an advocate for the credit union industry. During his time with the credit unions, Brian held the position of vice president for legislative affairs (MDDCUA) and director of state advocacy (CUNA).
In 2009, Brian joined the Financial Services Roundtable as vice president of banking. At FSR, Brian represented banks, card issuers and networks, asset management and insurance companies. Further, Brian led FSR efforts on interchange fees, orderly liquidation authority, fiduciary duty and retirement security. Work with member companies to develop public policy agenda and advocacy strategies on a wide range of issues before the administration, Congress and regulatory agencies.
Brian Tate currently resides in Silver Spring, Maryland, with his wife and three children.
For New York City proper, all five boroughs were in the middle of the list: Staten Island was ranked 161, Queens was 271, Manhattan at 312, Brooklyn at 320 and the Bronx was 327.
Most of the Florida counties considered at risk are in the northern and central portions of the state. But Broward County, which includes Fort Lauderdale, is also on that list.
There were four counties in the metro Chicago area on the list were Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will in Illinois. Cook County, which includes Chicago proper, is ranked 53rd most vulnerable.
Meanwhile, the only California county on the 50 most vulnerable list is Shasta. Los Angeles County was No. 276. The Bay Area counties were also in the bottom half of the list.
At the other end of the spectrum, 10 of the counties where the housing market is least vulnerable to the coronavirus are in Texas. Seven are in Wisconsin and there are five in Colorado.
King County in Washington, where Seattle is located, was the 20th least vulnerable county according to Attom.
