Palm Beach County Home Prices After the Crash By Lynn E. Szymoniak, Ed.

, Fraud Digest The crash of the housing market has left families with an insurmountable debt problem. Palm Beach County, Florida, is one of the counties hardest hit by falling home prices. In many cases, the Palm Beach County homes are now selling for less than 50% of the home prices in 2005-2006. Even when families are willing to forfeit their homes to their lenders, they still face significant deficiency judgments the difference between the total amount owed and the amount recovered by the bank by a resale. Bankruptcy is the only way to escape a deficiency judgment, but a bankruptcy will disqualify a family from eligibility for another mortgage. With fewer eligible borrowers, and an increasing number of homes being sold by the lenders, the price of homes continues to plummet and even more homeowners find themselves owing more than the current value of their home. This cycle will only be ended by principal reductions by banks, for families willing to stay in their homes. More foreclosures will exacerbate this problem and prevent any real widespread economic recovery. To prevent further deterioration of neighborhood home values, banks must demolish abandoned, moldy homes that have been gutted of plumbing, wiring and appliances. Banks must also limit their home sales in any one neighborhood so that prices may stabilize. Fannie, Freddie, securitization, predatory lending, and extreme profiteering destroyed economic hope for the majority of Americans. It is time for the banks to implement a policy of principal reductions to fair market value, with low-rate, fixed rate mortgages, and responsible home sales. The following Palm Beach County homes were listed for sale in November, 2011. The price in 2005-2006 is listed after the current price. 12935 North 57th Road, The Acreage, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $150,000 Sold for $335,000 on 4/20/2005

312 Putnam Ranch Road, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $150,000 Sold for $360,000 on 4/22/2005 1135 Imperial Lake Road, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $99,900 Sold for $270,000 on 7/31/2006 142 Rowley Drive, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $99,000 Sold for $250,000 on 6/15/2006 4818 Poseidon Place, Hypoluxo West, Lake Worth 11/11 Sale Price: $150,000 Sold for $240,000 on 8/30/2005 5436 Gene Circle, Summit Run, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $95,000 Sold for $250,000 on 8/24/2005 5254 West Canal Circle, Lake Worth 11/11 Sale Price: $94,900 Sold for $252,000 on 6/2/2005 400 Superior Place, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $95,000 Sold for $205,000 on 2/14/2005 3706 Shoma Drive, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $95,000 Sold for $269,000 on 4/28/2006 952 32nd Street, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $95,000 Sold for $340,000 on 5/27/2005 6263 Blue Baneberry Lane, Buttonwood West, Greenacres 11/11 Sale Price: $99,999 Sold for $160,000 on 7/20/2004 10735 LaStrada, Ibis, Palm Beach Gardens 11/11 Sale Price: $299,900 Sold for $473,207 on 8/18/2006 2

6315 Bischoff Road, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $98,500 Sold for $235,000 on 11/17/2006 313 North Ware Drive, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $99,900 Sold for $209,000 on 6/21/2006 1005 SW 17th Street, Boynton Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $99,000 Sold for $172,500 on 6/30/2006 2859 Kentucky Street, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $99,000 Sold for $179,000 on 7/20/2005 1701 Village Blvd., West Palm Beach 9/11 Sale Price: $53,000 Sold for $188,900 on 3/28/2005 8679 Falcon Green Drive, Palm Beach Gardens 11/11 Sale Price: $299,000 Sold for $550,000 on 7/24/2006 2912 South Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $299,000 Sold for $520,000 on 10/19/2005 10241 Orchard Reserve Drive, #1D, Ibis, Palm Beach Gardens 11/11 Sale Price: $299,000 Sold for $478,577 on 7/29/2005 616 Westwood Road, West Palm Beach 11/11 Sale Price: $299,000 Sold for $449,000 on 5/18/2005 There are many more examples of home with significantly reduced value. Most of these homes have been on the market for over six months. In November, 2011, there were 659 homes listed for sale in Palm Beach County for less than $75,000, and nearly 2,000 homes for sale for less than $500,000. It is time to find ways to keep families in their homes. 3