Tigard - Many Buyers Lack Credit Score Knowledge

Some consumers lack the knowledge about credit scores, and most importantly, how you can boost it to get better deals on home loans or other type of loans.

A survey of 1,000 consumers conducted by Opinion Research asked consumers 22 questions about credit scores. On average, consumers got 60 percent of the questions right, revealing several gaps in credit score knowledge.

Tigard - The 6 Most Vacant U.S. Cities

The recession and economic woes caused once-booming cities to never reach the potential that some builders had forecast in housing. Overbuilding during the housing boom era and some cities' high unemployment has left several cities across the country facing a high number of vacant homes that are blanketing their landscapes.

Forbes recently released a list of America’s Emptiest Cities, analyzing single-family and rental vacancy rates of the 75 largest metro areas across the country.

The top most vacant cities, according to the Forbes.com list are: (Note: The vacancy rates listed below are from the fourth quarter of 2010.)
1. Orlando
Home vacancy rate: 4.3 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 23.6 percent

2. Las Vegas
Home vacancy rate: 5.5 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 13.5 percent

3. Memphis, Tenn.
Home vacancy rate: 4.7 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 16.1 percent

4. Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif.
Home vacancy rate: 6.4 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 10.4 percent

5. Dayton, Ohio
Home vacancy rate: 3.3 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 26.4 percent


6. Phoenix
Home vacancy rate: 3.4 percent
Apartment vacancy rate: 15.5 percent

Nationwide, the single-family vacancy rate ended the year at 2.7 percent while rentals were at 9.4 percent.
Source: “America’s Emptiest Cities,” Forbes.com (March 2011)