In the midst of presidential debate season, Jed Kolko of Trulia said that neither Obama nor Romney “have housing as a winning issue” (see video above). In order to win two key swing states, he said, the candidates need to step it up.
Two swing states at issue: Florida and Nevada, which Kolko refers to as the states with “the highest housing misery in the country,” with sharp declines and a lot of borrowers delinquent, behind on payments or in foreclosure. As The Real Deal previously reported, 11 percent of Florida’s mortgaged homes are in foreclosure.
“Those are the places where Obama and Romney need to share what their plans are for housing and how they’re going to prevent the next housing bubble from happening,” said Kolko.
Kolko said it’s a bit surprising that either candidate hasn’t spoken more about housing, but then again the housing crisis now isn’t as severe as it was several years ago with prices rising and foreclosures declining in some states. [CNBC] — Zachary Kussin