Some of the healthiest markets in the country for home builders are in North Carolina. But the safest place is an active-adult mecca called The Villages in Florida.
According to Housing Intelligence, the spots with the fewest foreclosures are best for builders because repossessed homes that are put back on the market by lenders are tough competition, sometimes too tough.
HI, the research arm of Hanley Wood, says builders should analyze how many distressed properties are selling in a particular area compared to the number of new homes.
Builders argue that distressed sales create havoc with home values, making it more difficult for them to hold the line on prices. Consequently, says HI, areas with a relatively small share of distressed closings make for an attractive building environment.
Housing Intelligence looked at metropolitan areas with at least 500 new home closings last year and compared that volume to the number of distressed property sales. And by a wide margin of 18 to 1, the leader was The Villages west of Orlando.
But four of the top seven were in the Tar Heel state: Jacksonville at 12 to 1; Dunn at 5 to 1, and Fayetteville and Raleigh-Cary, each at 4 to 1.
Also on the list are the Tri-Cities, Wash., at 6 to 1, and Seaford, Del., 4 to 1.
