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IN THE NEWS Foreclosure Key Issue for Swing State's Recovery of economic issues in Florida, revealing the foreclosure crisis and its effects are a primary concern for constituents in the presidential electoral swing state. According to IHS, payrolls in the Sun- IHS Global Insight released an analysis shine State averaged a 0.1 percent annualized decline during the first half of this year, with weaknesses showing up in the construction sector, as well as in state and local govern- ment employment. Most troubling, though, was the state's high level of foreclosure activity. In the first quarter of 2012, the percentage of mortgages in default climbed to 14.3 percent—the high- est in the country and more than three times the national average of 4.4 percent. In terms of prime and subprime loans in foreclosure at the end of the first quarter, Florida also ranked No. 1. Florida's housing market is not expected to improve until foreclosure activity stabilizes; however, the large backlog of foreclosures currently waiting to go through the courts will prevent any stabilization for some time. So far, housing recovery in the state has been shouldered mostly by increases in home sales fueled by "drastically improved afford- ability." Existing single-family home sales are trending higher in Florida, removing some of the excess inventory from the market and stabilizing prices. Even so, IHS expects it will be almost a decade before the state's home prices return to 2008 levels. Private-sector services—referred to in the IHS report as "the backbone of the Florida economy"—have performed relatively well so far this year, and the state labor market is expected to bounce back the rest of 2012. Tourist activity improved, particularly from family vacationers and international travelers. Despite bits of positive news, IHS anticipates the Sunshine State still has a long way to go before it fully recovers from the recession. To date, Florida has gained back 20 percent of recessionary job losses. Its unemployment rate in June (8.6 percent) was the 13th highest in the country. State employ- ment is expected to advance 71,000 in 2012, with the construction and government sectors declining. 112