The number of Tennessee home foreclosures has risen about 25% in the first half of 2026, compared to the same time period for 2025, however Knox County has some of the lowest foreclosure risk in the state.
Tennessee's foreclosure risk county by county was determined and given a score between zero and 100 by real estate consulting company NestCash based on four factors: market softness, mortgage cost burden, mortgage delinquency and unemployment.
Foreclosure risk in Knox County
Of all 95 counties in Tennessee, Knox County had the fifth lowest foreclosure risk with a score of 31.1.
In most states, large metropolitan areas either have the lowest or highest foreclosure risk, according to NestCash. In Tennessee the data is divided, with counties home to Knoxville and Nashville having
some of the lowest foreclosure risk, but Shelby County, home to Memphis, having some of the highest risk.
Job growth, people moving to the area and rising incomes were among the reasons NestCash cited for Knox County's low foreclosure risk.
In market softness, Knox County scored a 22.8%. Market softness was determined by the number of houses on the market that had seen a price cut and the average number of days a house was on the market. A homeowner who is facing possible foreclosure will have trouble selling their home in a soft market, according to NestCash.
In mortgage cost burden, Knox County scored a 20.4%. Cost burden was determined by the share of homeowners in each county who spend more than 30% of household income on mortgage, which is a payment stress that could lead for higher foreclosure risk, according to NestCash. Counties at an elevated foreclosure risk had higher mortgage cost burden scores.
In mortgage delinquency, Knox County received a score of 0.6%. Mortgage delinquency was determined by how missed loan payments of 90 days or more, which is one of the earliest foreclosure indicators, according to NestCash.
Unemployment is a secondary driver of foreclosure risk, according to NestCash. In Knox County, unemployment is 3.5%.
Foreclosure risk in other Tennessee counties
The Tennessee county with the lowest foreclosure risk is Williamson County, which houses ritzy Nashville suburbs like Franklin and Brentwood. Williamson County's overall foreclosure risk score was 23.4.
Davidson County, where Nashville is located received a score of 38.1 and ranked No. 26 overall for foreclosure risk in the state. Middle Tennessee was the safest area in the state for foreclosure risk, with most of the counties in the area having steady jobs, high household incomes and a good housing market, according to NestCash.
Davidson County's market softness is 23.1%, mortgage cost burden is 27.6%, its mortgage delinquency is 0.4% and its unemployment 4.5%.
Pickett County, which received a score of 71.7, was the county with the highest foreclosure risk in the state.
Shelby County, home of Memphis, had the tenth highest foreclosure risk, according to NestCash. It received a score of 57.3.
Statewide, there were 3,001 foreclosures in the first half of 2026. NestCash predicts there could be a total of 6,500 foreclosures by the end of 2026. During the 2008 recession there were over 44,000 foreclosures in Tennessee, according to NestCash.
Tennessee counties with lowest foreclosure risk
- Williamson
- Wilson
- Blount
- Weakley
- Knox
- Rutherford
- Bledseo
- Dyer
- Wayne
- Perry
Tennessee counties with highest foreclosure risk
- Pickett
- Scott
- Hardeman
- Hancock
- Decatur
- Moore
- Hardin
- Lauderdale
- Haywood
- Shelby
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Knox County ranks among Tennessee counties with lowest foreclosure risk
