Georgia Legislation will Cause Foreclosures to Rise

Driving Residents from Georgia
with HB87 Like Legislation

Will Create Vacant Residential Dwelling Units

 Fewer Residents/Fewer Households=

Less Housing Demand = 

Lower Real Estate Values =

Less Tax Revenue to Fund Government

Driving residents from Georgia will fuel the foreclosure cycle with vacant properties that can NOT be filled due to a shrinking population.  

ALL Georgia property owners will be affected. 

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Understand, I do NOT condone illegal immigration.  

I do understand the issues from multiple perspectives.  HB87 is bad for the economy, tourism, business, housing and law enforcement to name a few.
   

The one "positive" feature is it will create many jobs in the legal profession.  Those jobs might include defending the legislation, representing immigrant clients, their children, and processing foreclosure documents to name a few.   Katie Dempsey's husband is with Dempsey Auctions, which conducts real estate auctions, including foreclosures.  Note that four of the five sponsors are attorneys.  It is interesting that this bill creates jobs in fields for many of their associates.   
  

Sponsor of HB87 & co-sponsors

• Matt Ramsey (attorney) - R - Peachtree City Dist 72 - Reps part of Fayette County
• Rich Golick (attorney) - R - Smyrna - District 34 -Reps part of Cobb County  
• Katie Dempsey (volunteer) - R - Rome  - District 13 - Reps part of Floyd County
• Rick Austin (attorney) - R - Demorest - Dist 10 - Reps Habersham & part of White County
• Stephen Allison (attorney) -  R - Blairsville - Dist 8 - Reps. Rabun, Towns, Union & part of White County

Representative Matt Ramsey represents an area with LOWER foreclosures rates than some other areas of the state.  Most metro Atlanta counties have significantly HIGHER foreclosure statistics.  You can review the Georgia data at RealtyTrac  or as a spreadsheet summary here:

• The Pew Hispanic Center estimates there are approximately 425,000 undocumented adults and children in Georgia.

• The number of households they represent will have a direct impact on the number of foreclosures Georgia is likely to generate with anti-immigrant legislation.  Increased foreclosure activity will cause property values to fall thereby affecting real estate property tax collections.  Meaning LESS money to fund government.

• The average number of occupants in a Georgia immigrant household in 2009, was 3.69 for homeowners and 3.62 for renters.

• Georgia immigrant households - 44% are home owners.   

The influx in of undocumented residents began when fears arose, in the early 1990s, that Georgia could not complete construction preparations for the 1996 Olympics.  Undocumented labor was "recruited" to help as one writer described it, "with a wink and a nod" from multiple government agencies, including Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS)/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE.)
 

Those construction workers often brought their young families.  Contractors found the work ethic and skills of this new work force admirable and utilized them to build during the housing boom.  Contractors, construction suppliers, title companies, lenders, real estate brokers and agents, government are just a few of those that benefited.  Obviously so did the families that were able to purchase affordable homes.

Those undocumented families rented or bought apartments and homes and settled here.  Others arrived.   The economy grew and was built with their presence and spending.  Their small undocumented children grew up, attended school, graduated high school all knowing Georgia as "home."

Mixed Status Families/Households

Those once small children have grown up and married;  some have married citizens or other "authorized residents."  They speak English as well as you, your friends or your neighbors.  Those couples have started families of their own, yet ONE parent is undocumented - unauthorized.   

 

When a household contains both "undocumented" aka "un-authorized" and "authorized" family members it is called "mixed-status."  (Most people do not understand there is no reasonable path to "get legal" for those brought here illegally as children because the immigration system is broken.)   That is a topic for another post.  This one is about how HB87 will affect FORECLOSURES.

Bills like HB87, if enacted, are DESIGNED to drive undocumented people from the state.  However, it will drive out NOT only households of "all" undocumented people but "mixed status" families AND citizen households as well.  The state population will shrink beyond expectations.   

FORECLOSURES:  Georgia1 is currently #8 in the nation for foreclosures;   (Arizona's2 is #2) You can see on this RealtyTrac map where Georgia foreclosures are concentrated.

• There may be only  ONE  undocumented person in a household, but the WHOLE household is likely to leave if HB87 is enacted.  Georgia could lose 3 to 5 legal residents for each undocumented person in mixed status households.   Some will be business owners & employers.

• As dwellings are vacated the current housing glut will expand as multiple dwelling units flood the market, in a relatively short time frame.  It will be HARDER, if not near impossible to rent a home/apartment for enough to cover the mortgage. Georgia will no longer have the population to fill available housing units. 

• Homes will sit vacant deteriorating in neighborhoods until the population increases and jobs are available so people can rent or purchase these units.  Will squatters make them "home?"

• Properties rented at greatly reduced rates will not have the profit margin to be properly maintained, likely bringing down the whole neighborhood.

• According to the US Census Bureau Vacancy Rates in the "South Region" of the United States exceed those of other areas. 

Imagine what will happen if 100,000 additional residential dwelling units are vacated in a short time and  remain vacant, deteriorating in neighborhoods.

If more is owed on a property than the mortgage balance, a property is considered "under water."  Selling a house for less than is owed may subject the owner to the debt balance, can you afford that loss?  

• How long will it take on the market if you NEED to sell your home or the home of a one of a loved one?  
• How long can you afford to make mortgage payments on a vacant property? 
• Will you be able to sell your home for a job transfer or promotion?  Not likely.
• Will you be able to sell your home to move to a better school district?  Not likely
• If your parents or grandparents pass away and their real estate assets need to be sold, how long will it take?  Years?  
• Will you be able to rent it?
• Whether you rent or own, ask yourself: How will your neighborhood change?  

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-02-24/foreclosure-homes-sold-at-28-discount-last-year-as-supply-grew.html