More vacant homes
The country's homeowner vacancy rate -- empty homes for sale -- hit a record in the first three months of this year, the Census Bureau said today. Some 2.9 percent of homes were vacant, the highest figure for a quarter since recordkeeping began in 1960.
The Census, perhaps expecting heart palpitations, notes that this isn't "statistically different" from the 2.8 percent rate in the first and fourth quarters of last year. But it's certainly a significant jump from the 1.8 percent vacancy rate in the beginning of 2005.
The vacancy rates range by region: 2 percent in the Northeast, 2.9 percent in the Midwest and 3.2 percent in both the South and West. Census counts Maryland as part of the southern region.
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