Millions of Children Feel the Strain of Foreclosure

At least two million children nationwide will be affected by the foreclosure crisis in 2008 and 2009, according to a report issued last week. The experience of being forced from home causes children to experience behavioral problems and mental and physical health issues and puts them at greater risk of being held back and even dropping out of school.

The study was conducted by First Focus, a bipartisan advocacy organization for children and families. It is the first comprehensive study of the effects of the subprime crisis on children. Since the study does not take into account children in rental units that are in default, First Focus believes that this number will rise even higher once a methodology for measuring this population is established.

The findings of this report make it abundantly clear that children who are affected by foreclosure are in desperate need of immediate housing and intervention services. We know that transience, exposure to violence, and dropping out of school can lead to a myriad of other issues, many of which put these children at an increased risk of becoming homeless as teens or adults.

This study confirms that a problem exists. Now, we must take steps to address it.

Here are the most compelling findings from the study:

• Due to the increasing number of foreclosures, school districts across the country are experiencing increases in the number of homeless children entering their classrooms;
• Children impacted by the mortgage crisis are likely to experience excessive mobility and as a result are only half as likely to be proficient in reading as their peers. Moreover, they are much more likely to be held back and eventually drop out of school;
• Children forced from their homes experience behavioral problems, such as increases in violence;
• The physical and mental health of displaced children can be severely compromised, as families losing their homes are less likely to have money available for items such as health care and health insurance.

You can read the report in its entirety here. 

[Picture: 13-year old Megan Hamilton lives in a California homeless shelter with four other members of her family. Read her story here.]