Johnny Depp Escapes Hollywood Horror: $10 Million Lifeline Saves Homes As Millions Face Zombie Foreclosure Fate

Hollywood star Johnny Depp escaped a plight many Americans cannot avoid.

Last year, the actor, known for his iconic role as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, took out a $10 million loan to save his two West Hollywood, California, homes from foreclosure.

However, most people don't have the financial means to save their homes if they get into trouble, and many abandon them if they can no longer afford their mortgage payments — a practice known as zombie foreclosure.

According to ATTOM’s second-quarter 2024 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report, about 1.3 million residential properties remained vacant in the United States during the second quarter, roughly the same as the previous quarter.

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Zombie foreclosures — preforeclosure properties abandoned by owners — plummeted by 20.6% from a year ago to 6,94. Zombie properties represent a shrinking portion of the nation's total housing stock, accounting for one in every 14,724 homes in the U.S. That's down from one in 13,905 in the previous quarter and from one in 11,577 a year ago, the lowest level since early 2021.

"Predictions of a huge spike in foreclosures after the moratorium, with the potential for a surge in zombie properties, never came true. Indeed, the opposite has happened, as abandoned homes in foreclosure continue to get harder and harder to find around the country," ATTOM CEO Rob Barber said. "Some signs have popped up over the past year that the long U.S. housing market boom is giving back some of its gains, which could lead to declining equity and more foreclosures. We are still far from losing the benefit of having zombie properties nearly disappear from the housing market landscape."

The number of zombie properties dropped after the housing market experienced 12 years of price increases. The median home value nationally dropped by 4% to $330,000 in early 2024 but was still up 3% from a year ago. Home values have increased yearly since 2012, more than doubling.

Because of the gains, homeowner wealth has risen to historic levels. Nearly 95% of homeowners paying down mortgages have built at least some equity, and almost 50% own less than half the estimated value of their properties.

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