Palm Beach County, Fla., has been hit hard with a wave of foreclosures, registering nearly 2,500 active foreclosures on its books in April 2009, according to our most recent statistics.

It’s naturally had a significant negative impact on several neighborhoods, which are already struggling to maintain the highest possible property values because of the massive collective dip in home prices that has gripped the entire South Florida region.

As if the growing foreclosure situation and declining home values weren’t enough to handle, vandals and squatters who are often drawn to vacant homes are exacerbating the situation. Indeed, broken windows and the like have forced the county commissioners to take matters into their own hands.

Here’s a snip from Barbara Alterman, head of the county’s planning, zoning and building department, according to a Palm Beach Post article:

“There is a lot of vandalism going on. It is maintaining the neighborhood by allowing them to board up when there is vandalism. It is helping the neighborhood by keeping vandals out.”

Boarded up and shuttered homes are certainly not going to help banks move their inventories any quicker — it’s not the most eye-catching/appealing marketing tactic. These properties also won’t help raise the values of the inhabited homes on the block.

However, it will help preserve the homes until new owners move in, and perhaps more important for you, it could help you get into a very nice home at a price that you can afford. In short, it’s not an ideal solution, but one that you could use to your advantage if you are in the market for a real steal.

To check out the latest foreclosure and other distressed real estate listings in the Palm Beach County, Fla., area visit Foreclosure.com today right here.

New England-based retirees are flocking south to Ft. Myers, Fla., and gobbling up cheap bank-owned homes that range in price from $20,000 to $150,000, according to Boston.com.

The reason for the mass snowbird migration? Baseball.

Yep, the Fenway faithful are taking advantage of the unbelievable real estate market conditions (all-time low home prices and interest rates) to get a little closer to their favorite Major League Baseball (MLB) team, the Boston Red Sox.

A local broker neatly sums up the feeding frenzy:

“People from New England are buying like crazy here.”

The 2004 and 2007 World Champions currently play spring ball at City of Palms Park, which was built in 1992. And a new $100 million spring training stadium that is scheduled to open in 2012 is expected to keep the club there for years to come.

So if you’re in the market for a vacation home in the area you better act now before it’s too late! Search for foreclosure homes in Ft. Myers before the hardcore fans clean out the good inventory right here. It’s free for seven days.

Foreclosure reared its ugly ahead once again today, demonstrating that it truly does not discriminate.

Charter School Institute in Hallandale Beach, Fla., recently fell behind on its $300,000 monthly mortgage commitments after being tenants at 520 NW 5th St. in Broward County for about eight years and, as a result, had no other choice but to pack up and vacate the building.

The school’s founder, Joseph Valbrun, is puzzled with how things turned out:

“I cannot believe they’re doing what they’re doing. We let them know that we had a difficult time like everybody else.”

The Miami Herald reports that Valbrun has known about the looming action for sometime now and as of a 2006 audit the school, under his leadership, had racked up a debt of about $2 million because of several city code violations and a $1.5 million lien.

Regardless of the financial situation behind the scenes this is still all very unfortunate … especially for the approximately 40 students who attended the learning facility.

The silver lining is that those students and their families have not been left totally out to dry: They will be bused to the school’s other campus in Fort Lauderdale, which is about 18 miles away from the Hallandale location.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

The foreclosure crisis has affected families and communities throughout the United States hard … some more than others. Miami, Fla., which at its peak several years ago boasted a booming condominium market, is among those hardest hit.

And rather than let foreclosed homes sit vacant while families fend for themselves on the streets, one local activist, Max Rameau, is taking matters into his own hands and moving families — albeit illegally — into the bank-owned properties.

He’s also doing it in broad daylight and not under the cloak of the night.

Here’s is what he had to say about the brazen initiative:

“We’re matching homeless people with people-less homes…. I think everyone deserves a home. Homeless people across the country are squatting in empty homes. The question is: Is this going to be done out of desperation or with direction?”

Rameau is part of a recently-formed organization called, Take Back the Land. In addition to “placing” homeless families in foreclosure homes the group provides them with “secondhand furniture, cleaning supplies and yard upkeep

As mentioned earlier, this process, which is essentially referred to as squatting, is illegal and punishable by law. However, Rameau and his associates do not seem deterred by the prospect of possible arrest.

Here’s another quote from him:

“Within a couple of months, this place would be stripped and drug dealers would be living here. There’s a real need here, and there’s a disconnect between the need and the law. Being arrested is just one of the potential factors in doing this.”

Rameau has thus far helped six families into foreclosed homes and has nine on a waiting list, according to the report. He has not been arrested or approached by the authorities … yet.

Former member of “The Fugees” and acclaimed hip hop producer Wyclef Jean — who has sold more than 30 million albums throughout his illustrious career — is the latest celebrity to feel the foreclosure blues.

Several published reports indicate that Jean and several friends failed to pay construction costs and fines on an unfinished $1.4 million Miami, Fla., mansion that the group purchased together more than two years ago with plans to renovate.

All told, Jean and Co. now owe approximately $2.4 million on the home. And if the outstanding liens and payments are not cured in a matter of days, the home will be foreclosed on and sold at public auction on December 12.

Jean joins a growing list of other high-profile homeowners, including Michael Jackson, Jose Canseco, Ed McMahon, Evander Holyfied, Latrell Sprewell and others, who have recently found themselves facing foreclosure situations.

It just goes to show once again that no one is immune to foreclosure — it can happen to anyone at anytime.

For more celebrity foreclosure-related news click here.