How Foreclosures Effect Children

• Neighborhoods and News
• encinitas realtor, foreclosures effect children, foreclosures in encinitas, homes for sale in encinitas
• July 25, 2012

While homes for sale in Encinitas that have gone into foreclosure can offer reduced prices for buyers, foreclosed homes for sale in Encinitas and, more importantly the entire nation, have a significant impact on the families who once called them their homes.

Adults are obviously stressed at best when it comes to foreclosures and can see the foreclosure process as them being stripped of the American Dream. This then has a significant effect on the children of families in foreclosure, according to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s (CHoP) recent study.

The CHoP study suggests that there is a strong correlation between the rate of child physical abuse and local mortgage foreclosures. The study found that overall physical abuse increased by 0.79 percent per year in the period between 2000 and 2009, while traumatic brain injury increased by 3 percent in the same time.

The study also found that for each 1% increase in 90-day mortgage delinquencies over the course of a year could be associated with a 3% increase in hospital admissions due to child physical abuse and a 5% increase in admissions due to traumatic brain injury suspected to be caused by abuse. Higher rates of emergency room admissions were also found in areas with higher foreclosure rates as well.

Physical abuse is not the only issue that children in a family dealing with foreclosure have to endure; data going back as far as the 1930’s suggests that parents under financial duress engage in less supportive and harsher parenting behaviors.

If there is anything that I can do as an Encinitas Realtor to help you and your family with a foreclosure, a short sale to avoid a foreclosure, finding you a more affordable home, or point you in the direction of the professionals who can best assist you, please contact me.

Foreclosures can be a very jarring and terrifying experience and the assistance of a professional real estate agent won’t make the process pleasant, but hopefully I can help you shoulder some of the burden and responsibility.

If you know or suspect any child abuse occurring in your neighborhood this list of important resources can help you (just scroll down to the bottom of this article under the sub-heading “Important Resources”).