As the GOP presidential hopefuls try to bring out voters and sway them to their causes today, let’s take this time focus on an issue area at the forefront of Florida voters’ minds: the housing market.

Florida’s economy was one of the hardest during this recession.  It has an unemployment rate of 9.9%, 1.4% higher than the national average.  As of December 2011, Florida has the 5^th highest foreclosure rate in the nation, 1 out of every 360 homes. Even though these numbers are troubling, it must be noted that they have improved substantially since President Obama stepped in. But more on that later…

The remaining GOP candidates have  given their vision on how to fix Florida, and by extension, the country’s overall housing market.  Mitt Romney has famously stated that the government should not try to aid individuals facing foreclosures and allow for the process to run its course.  It should be noted that Romney, a multimillionaire, has several expensive and lofty homes of his own, and none are in danger of being foreclosed on.  Newt Gingrich’s past as a lobbyist working with Freddie Mac has also been a major topic within the context of the primary process. Gingrich was paid roughly $1.6 million to lobby on behalf of one the key players of the housing bubble and bust. Congressman Ron Paul holds similar views to Romney. He suggests that the government should not intervene and that housing prices should continue to plummet.  And Rick Santorum has claimed a history of opposition to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. However, his claims of fighting against the GSE have been somewhat less than truthful.

The President and his administration, however, have taken steps to actively restore the market and prevent such a boom and bust from happening again. Although Florida’s unemployment rate and foreclosure rate remain high, they have steadily been decreasing thanks to President Obama. As stated earlier, their 9.9% unemployment rate sounds bad, but that is down from 12.0% in December 2010. Florida’s foreclosure rates have been declining as well, seeing a 56% decrease in the number of foreclosure filings since July 2010.

Secretary Shaun Donovan and the Department of Urban Development have been at the frontline of this issue. Federal funds have been awarded throughout the U.S. to rebuild communities, construct affordable housing projects, help the homeless and counsel those facing underwater mortgages.  The President also created The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with guidance from Harvard Law School Professor Elizabeth Warren. Headed by former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray, the CFPB was created to protect consumers and homeowners from shady financial dealings by corporations.

Then, just last week, Obama named former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman as the head of an interagency task force within the CFPB. Schneiderman will be charged with investigating banks and mortgage lenders that engaged in predatory lending, robo-signing and other dishonest practices that caused the housing downturn.

The contrast between the presidential candidates and President Obama is stark. Given each candidates history of statements and positions, not much confidence can be garnered that, if elected, a Republican president will do much to alleviate the country’s housing situation.