Reporting at the Foreclosure Frontlines

By Kelly Carr
March 18, 2009 05:32 PM

Welcome to the frontlines of the distressed housing market. In Arizona, the tumultuous economy has forced Chris Casacchia and the rest of the staff at the Phoenix Business Journal to reorganize their coverage.

Arizona ranks at the top for the nation’s highest foreclosure rates and has been identified as one of the leading spots for home value depreciation. This is a place not accustomed to downward trending numbers, a state that’s used to seeing a high-growth rate and flocks of investors yearning for approval to build the next mega-housing or commercial project.

But over the last year everything has changed. And the switch from people scooping up homes to scattered, empty subdivisions has changed coverage.

“To be in Phoenix, it is really is ground zero,” Casacchia said. “We are where the whole financial crisis started in housing and what’s a better case study than right here?”

Right now the team of six reporters at the Phoenix Business Journal is working to cover every angle of President Obama’s $75 billion plan to help homeowners and his overall stimulus package to jump-start the erratic economy. The real estate reporter is tracking infrastructure parts of the bill. The environmental/technology reporter is watching science funding and the political reporter is keeping an eye on transportation.

Line by line, the staff is scouring to understand how every penny of the stimulus will impact the communities they cover.

Casacchia, a banking reporter, has been on this story since its very first moments. He was packed into the gymnasium at Dobson High School in Mesa when President Obama first unveiled the plan, and he is currently tracking the almost 50,000 empty homes in the Valley to determine exactly what type of relief the bill could provide. If the homes remain vacant, there will be more of a snowball effect on the state’s troubled housing market.

Recently Casacchia and Mike Sunnuckus reported that Valley investors are on the losing end of Obama’s rescue plan. These investors represent a large part of those hit hard by the housing crisis, since they came into the state swallowing up land and homes as the area was rapidly growing.

Many of those spots now are empty and unable to be sold. And for now, the lifeline they were hoping for might not be coming.

“Because there are so many people under water with their mortgages, we are unsure how helpful the program will be. It’s yet to be determined how this will play out,” said Casacchia who has worked at the Phoenix Business Journal since 2005. “The foreclosure situation is so widespread here. We’ve been trying to do the best we possibly can.”

Casacchia says reporters should spend time closely monitoring the plan’s allotted funds to their state. Also pay attention to which homeowners in your area are getting relief and the groups that are left out. After you begin to understand how your state is faring, round out your coverage by understanding how your area fits into the national picture.

“Look at your state compared to other states,” he said. “There is really good stuff in there. It’s just about managing your time and resources. “

For more details on how to cover the stimulus package on your home turf, check out these stories:

Will the Stimulus Stimulate?
Tracking Stimulus Spending
The Plan's Aftermath

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Copyright © 2009 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism