Pricey zip codes can’t escape foreclosure crisis

People living in the country’s priciest and glitziest zip codes haven’t escaped the foreclosure crisis, according to recent data cited by Forbes, with northern North Jersey and southern New York having the largest total number of pricey neighborhoods riddled by foreclosures in the nation. Among these pricey neighborhoods are Great Neck and Old Wesbury.

Loss of income may be the most common reason for foreclosures in pricey neighborhoods but experts say they’re seeing a rise in the number of strategic foreclosures on that end of the market.

“Strategic defaults can be an even bigger issue with higher-end homes, where if you’re 25 percent underwater that could mean hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, because the borrowers may be more financially shrewd and consider it a financial decision to walk away from the home,” said Daren Blomquist of foreclosure listings site RealtyTrac.

The foreclosure processes in New York and New Jersey could also have something to do with the areas’ high foreclosure inventory, according to RealtyTrac, which reported that the average number of days a New York-based foreclosure takes to process is 986 days, compared to 336 days nationwide. [Forbes]