Foreclosure hits close to home for a Cyberhomes staffer.
Foreclosure is such a widespread problem these days that it touches all of us. If you haven't personally experienced foreclosure, then no doubt a friend or neighbor has, or perhaps there's a bank-owned property for sale on your block or in your town.
Cyberhomes' new Facing Foreclosure special report examines the widespread foreclosure problem in the U.S., with real estate data, tips on how to deal with foreclosure or how to purchase distressed properties, and a slideshow on the foreclosure problem in the Las Vegas area.
In the special report, Cyberhomes editor Janine Sieja offers a unique look at the foreclosure problem -- a perspective I haven't seen elsewhere. She shares her story of what happens when the home she grew up in falls into foreclosure, and how it affects her family. She also details how her old neighborhood has changed over the years. While she and her family have long since moved out of the home, the experience is still a tough one. Click here to read her full account, "When Foreclosure Hits the Family Home."
It's interesting how much a home still means to us, even after we've moved out and moved on. I sometimes drive by the two homes I grew up in during my childhood, both only within about a 30-mile radius of my current New Jersey home. Both have changed much since I lived in them, but the changes have been good. And when I'm curious, I can log onto Cyberhomes, type in the homes' addresses, and pull up the properties' information -- I can look at overhead photos of the houses, and see their estimated values and their sales history. And from the looks of it, my most recent childhood home, in Middlesex County, N.J., hasn't been sold since my parents sold it in 1996. It must be in good hands.—Lauren Baier Kim