When you are talking about the nation's foreclosure crisis, you can't really talk about whether the glass is half full or half empty. The glass has tipped over on the table, and the only question is how much milk will be left when the market turns around.

Maine's experience offers a good example.

Sure, our foreclosure rate in June was better than that of 37 states, according to statistics released today by RealtyTrac. In New England, only Vermont (50th) had a lower ratio of households per forclosure.

We're not anywhere near Nevada, the hardest hit state, where one in every 43 households has received a foreclosure notice. In Maine, it's one in 838.

Still, it's hard to say that Maine's 40.55 percent increase in foreclosures in the second quarter of 2008, versus the previous quarter, is good news. It's horrible in its own right and substantially worse than the national increase of 13.82 percent.

Within the state, York County has been hardest hit, with the other "urban" counties of Cumberland and Penobscot trailing behind. Rural areas such as Aroostook and Washington counties fared the best.

The Wall Street Journal had a good article about why foreclosure statistics, in particular, should be taken with a grain of salt. There's no central database of foreclosures that these statistics can be built upon.

Still, even with all the analytical shortcomings that may exist, the depth of the problem can't be denied.

Also today, new statistics about the underlying Maine real estate market show that Maine continues to experience real weakness.

"Realtors sold 996 homes last month, a drop of 24.32 percent from last June's sales figure of 1,316 homes," according to a line in the Realtors' news release outlining the trends. That pretty much says it all.

The median price of a single-family home in Maine was down 6 percent during the 12-month period.

Several groups in Maine are working to address the housing crisis.

On Thursday, for example, the Maine Housing Counselor Network plans to hold a foreclosure prevention workshop at the Knights of Columbus, 47 High St., Sanford, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Housing counselors, foreclosure attorneys and loan professionals will be there to speak with homeowners about foreclosure prevention techniques. The event is free and open to the public.

Let's hope that work like this helps pick glass off the table real soon, so that our economy can start filling it back up.

E-mail this entry to a friend