According to an article in the Dallas Morning News, Dallas-Fort Worth area foreclosure filings have increased by 3 percent for February. Over 13,000 foreclosure postings have been recorded since 2009 began and 4,200 Dallas-Fort Worth area homes are scheduled for auction at the next foreclosure sale in early March 2009.

These foreclosure numbers speak to the failure of the voluntary mortgage modification programs that have been encouraged as a solution to the foreclosure crisis. The number of foreclosures hitting Dallas-Fort Worth is going to cause seismic shifts in the economic landscape and leave many Dallas-Fort Worth residents poorer, possibly for generations to come if the tide is not turned quickly.

Many of the families losing their homes to foreclosure will end up “unofficially” homeless, relying on friends and family to provide a “temporary” place to live. This type of shift in homeownership shrinks the property tax base that supports our public services, such as schools, police and public works. A moratorium on foreclosures needs to be put in place now, while legislation is evaluated and passed to tackle this foreclosure crisis.