A recent poll from the New York Times and CBS illustrates the link between the current recession and the foreclosure and eviction crises.
Unemployed respondents were asked the question, “As a result of being unemployed, have you been threatened with foreclosure or eviction for not paying your mortgage or rent, or haven’t you?” If the response was yes, the respondent was asked whether he or she had lost their home.
Fully 26% of the unemployed respondents said they had been threatened with foreclosure and eviction for not paying their mortgage or rent and half of these respondents—13%—said they had lost their homes for these reasons. Interestingly, 44% of unemployed respondents identified themselves as renters, a considerably higher percentage than the 32% of U.S. households that rent. Thirty-six percent said they owned a home with a mortgage, and 11% reported owning their homes outright.
Given that an estimated 15.4 million Americans were unemployed in November, these numbers suggest that as many as 4 million people have been threatened with foreclosure and eviction and 2 million may have lost their homes. The poll was conducted using telephone interviews, of both landlines and cell phones, conducted from December 5 to December 10, 2009. According to New York Times website, the poll of unemployed respondents has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Complete poll results can be found here: http://documents.nyt imes.com/the-new-york- t imes-cbs-news-poll-of-unemployed-adults#p=1