Stress Test: Can South Florida Withstand Coming Wave Of Condo Foreclosures?
A Florida legislator predicted that a wave of condo foreclosures will begin hitting Florida in March 2025. We ran the numbers to better understand South Florida's distressed condo market.
Florida State Rep. Mike Caruso (R-Delray Beach) is predicting a wave of condo foreclosures to hit the state beginning in March. (Video courtesy of the Miami Herald.)
Can South Florida’s condo market withstand the stress of a wave of foreclosures that is expected to hit the sunshine state in about 30 days?
It is anyone’s guess but what is clear is that buyers, sellers and lenders will be monitoring South Florida's distressed condo market in the months ahead following a warning issued this week by a Florida legislator who predicted a rapid increase in foreclosures throughout the state.
Following Monday's Florida Legislature Special Session that reportedly lasted all of 10 minutes and provided no relief to cash-strapped unit owners, Florida State Rep. Mike Caruso (R-Delray Beach) predicted that the sunshine state could experience a surge in foreclosure filings beginning in March 2025.
"Fixed income elderly, they need it (relief) now," said Rep. Caruso in a video published by the Miami Herald. "They're going to get their next HOA (maintenance) Due bill on February 1st in less than three or four days and they're not going to be able to pay it. They already couldn't pay the first one in January and not going to pay the second one in February.
"That's when it all goes to the attorneys for foreclosure and the problem really starts to exacerbate itself."
Given Rep. Caruso's comments, we decided to run the numbers to establish a better understanding and a baseline to track the South Florida distressed condo market going forward from today, Jan. 29, 2025.
Below, you will find a series of eight charts measuring shortsales and foreclosures (also known as real estate owned [REO] properties by lenders) in the tricounty South Florida region of Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach.