HotPads Foreclosure Maps Heat Up Congressional Elections; Again

Will housing trends impact the upcoming Congressional elections? Absolutely. That's why HotPads released its second interactive Congressional District Foreclosure and Rent Ratio Heat Maps (see 2008 stats here), helping visualize housing data which will shape the 2010-2012 political landscape.

The data shows Democrat represented districts faring noticeably better in 2010 compared to Republican districts, which are experiencing 31% higher foreclosure rates compared to Democratic counterparts. HotPads also identified the best and worst performing congressional districts as well as other surprising housing trends.



The Political Heat Map (calculated using all homes that are currently in the foreclosure process) shows Democrat districts experiencing a 10% foreclosure decrease (from .47 in 2008 to .42 in 2010) while Republican districts seeing a 10% increase (from .50 in 2008 to .55 in 2010).   At the same time, Democrats represent 27 of the 50 worst performing districts, while Republican make up only 23.

The Rent Ratio Heat Map, introduced in 2008, highlights areas where it makes more sense to rent and where it makes sense to buy. This is calculated by dividing an area's median house price by annual rent (try it out here). On a national level, 2010 average rent ratio has decreased to 9.96 from 12.89 in 2008, meaning over the last two years buying became a cheaper option than renting. Decreasing home values and steady rent may in part explain this trend.

The Foreclosure Heat Map data shows that States with a troubled housing market in 2008 remain mostly unchanged, with California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida showing highest housing instability again in 2010.  The construction boom in these states before the market downturn created a surplus of new homes and subsequently contributed to home value depreciations, creating conditions for higher foreclosures.



Comparing foreclosure percent changes from 2008 to 2010, Moore (D, Kansas 3), Cassidy (D, Louisiana 6), Petri (R, Wisconsin 6), McCarthy (D, New York 4) represent highest foreclosure growth districts while Shays (R, Connecticut 4), Delauro (D, Connecticut 3), Murphy (D, Connecticut 5), Alexander (R, Louisiana 5), Larson (D, Connecticut 1) represent districts with best improvements from 2008. 

Interestingly, the top 20 districts with the highest foreclosure rates in 2008 show a 37% reversal in 2010, with the exclusion of representatives Titus (R, Nevada 3), Berkley (D, Nevada 1), Franks (R, Arizona 2), and Flake (R, Arizona 6) who's districts saw a foreclosure increase from 2008. In part, the 2010 foreclosure rate decrease among the hardest hit districts in 2008 can be attributed to the foreclosure rush at the peak of the financial downturn in 2008. 

We also compared the Cook Partisan Voting Index (PVI), which quantifies the degree to which a region is liberal or conservative, against foreclosure rates. Surprisingly, among the top 25 most liberal and top 25 most conservative districts, liberal districts had 60% higher foreclosure rates than conservative districts.

The 2010 congressional heat map outlines all 435 districts and shows the foreclosure environments in each. Zooming into the map unveils the districts' party affiliation and informs users about local housing conditions, making it an indispensable tool for anyone following US politics. 

In addition to mapping housing conditions, HotPads.com helps users visually browse districts by party affiliation, rent ratio, income, and age. Users interested in a more granular search can easily organize the map by city, state, zip code, and county.

Releasing the industry's first interactive heat map linking politics to the housing market in 2008, HotPads.com is committed to tracking market trends and making housing data easily accessible by all. HotPads.com is an innovative, map based real estate search engine helping close to 2.5 million monthly users find their new home.