Washington Foreclosures: Losing Steam and Coastline
In Washington State, the economy is struggling along. There is plenty of room for improvement, and changes have been coming. 
Unfortunately, some of those changes have been brutal for the people of Washington. Education has been seeing cuts at all levels. Schools, which are supposed to be the highest priority according to the state constitution, have been suffering the biggest cuts. Out of an estimated $5 billion in budget cuts statewide, lawmakers announced in February that $2 billion of that would come from the education budget. This has to hurt given that education is still reeling from a ten-percent reduction over the last 5 years, going from 50% to 40% of state spending. Much of the legislature’s efforts in finding more funds have been aimed at one of the state’s biggest expenditures and its most important transit systems. The coastal ferries have been a big point of dispute, with everyone acknowledging their necessity and value in maintaining the safety of regular commuters and tourists. The ferries need millions of dollars that have still not been earmarked yet. There has been talk of privatizing boat ownership, labor, maintenance, or all of the above. For some bit of good news, in February alone, unemployment fell to 9.1% with the addition of an estimated 800 jobs. Washington foreclosures also fell statewide, showing hope for the mortgage industry in the Pacific Northwest.
In the best possible economic news for the state, no city or county reported an increase in foreclosure sales, mortgage defaults or sheriff’s sales. Federal loan modification is now in effect statewide. The state and federal housing authorities have instituted their own policies of traditional loan modification, while greatly increasing the number of low-cost and free foreclosure prevention counselors all over the state, focusing on getting help to the rural areas as the cities seem to be seeing decreases in foreclosures across the entire state. There were widespread decreases, led by Vancouver foreclosures which fell by 18.75%. Next were Renton foreclosures, which dropped by 17.95%, and Seattle foreclosures, which decreased by 16.46%. Right behind Seattle were Tacoma foreclosures which registered a close 16% lower for the month of February. Still reasonably significant were Kent foreclosures, which decreased by 14.29%, and Everett foreclosures with a 6.06% fall.
In February, Washington’s coastline experienced record tides. The high tides are seen as just one of the signs of the imminent rise of the sea level due to climate change. Dubbed the ‘king tides’ by ecologists, they came all throughout February and were not deemed a threat, so contests ran up and down the Pacific for the best waves and photos of the phenomenon. The tides were publicized more as a sign of what will happen; a 6-inch sea-level rise is predicted to take place if nothing is done to stop or reverse the effects of climate change. Some of the evidence shown just in February by the temporary tidal rise was the erosion of cliffs and bluffs, beaches shifting inland, threats to coastal structures and roads, flooding, and more. The economic impact is estimated to be over $1,250 a year per household by the year 2020, when the permanent rise would have happened, according to forecasts. As of the end February, the 2010 fourth-quarter fines assessed by the Department of Ecology against individuals and businesses are currently over $122, 748 that the state is in the midst of collecting. Hopefully, some of that income will help in the preservation of the coastlines and maybe also prevent more cuts to the environmental studies part of the state budget. At least the job numbers and Washington foreclosures are picking up at their end of the economy, so there is hope for the Pacific Northwest and its recovery from the mortgage crisis.
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