Foreclosure Process Marks Third
Consecutive Quarter Setting All-Time High.

Delinquencies Increase in Latest MBA
National Delinquency Survey

MORTGAGE BANKERS ASSOCIATION / Press Release 6sep2007

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties stood at 5.12 percent of all loans outstanding in the second quarter of 2007 on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis, up 28 basis points from the first quarter of 2007, and up 73 basis points from one year ago, according to MBA’s National Delinquency Survey. The delinquency rate does not include loans in the process of foreclosure. The percentage of loans in the foreclosure process was 1.40 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the second quarter, an increase of 12 basis points from the first quarter of 2007 and 41 basis points from one year ago.

The rate of loans entering the foreclosure process was 0.65 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, seven basis points higher than the previous quarter and up 22 basis points from one year ago. This quarter’s foreclosure starts rate is the highest in the history of the survey, with the previous high being last quarter’s rate.

Similar to last quarter, the national delinquency and foreclosure rates are being driven by what is taking place in a few large states. Additionally, the performance of prime and subprime adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) is contributing significantly to the overall results.

“The percent of mortgages in Ohio that are 90 days or more past due or in foreclosure is still more than twice the national average and 1% of all of the mortgages in Michigan had foreclosure actions started on them during the last quarter, essentially the same rate as during the last quarter. Problems are still significant in the nearby states of Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Pennsylvania. While Michigan’s problems continue to escalate, however, Ohio’s have shown signs of leveling off, albeit at a high level,” said Doug Duncan, MBA’s Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research and Business Development.

“What continues to drive the national numbers, however, is what is happening in the states of California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona. Were it not for the increases in foreclosure starts in those four states, we would have seen a nationwide drop in the rate of foreclosure filings. Thirty four states had decreases in their rates of new foreclosure and the increases were very modest in the states with increases, other than those four,” Duncan said.

“In addition, there is a clear divergence in performance between fixed rate and adjustable rate mortgages due to the impact of rate resets. While the seriously delinquent rate for prime fixed loans was essentially unchanged from the first quarter of the year to the second, and the rate actually fell for subprime fixed rate loans, that rate increased 36 basis points for prime ARM loans and 227 basis points for subprime loans.

“What is not clear, however, is whether subprime ARM loans are causing the problems for California or whether California is causing the problems for subprime loans. California has 17 percent of the subprime ARMs in the country and over 19% of the foreclosure starts on subprime ARMs. The four states of California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona have more than one-third of the nation’s subprime ARMs, more than one-third of the foreclosure starts on subprime ARMs, and are responsible for most of the nationwide increase in foreclosure actions.

“There are special circumstances driving conditions in those four states that will likely make things worse:

• Declining home prices make refinancing of these ARMs difficult, particularly if the borrower originally put down little if any down payment. Home prices have dropped in all four of these states and 52 of the 59 MSAs in the four states saw home price declines during the second quarter according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO).

• The root of the home price problem there is that the inventory of new homes available for sale in the Western Region hit an all-time record high at the end of the second quarter. In addition, Florida continues to see a major supply of condos and other new homes on the market. • These four states have a disproportionately high share of investor loans, or loans to buyers who do not plan to live in the house. As of June 30, the non-owner occupied share of defaulted loans (90 days of more past due or in foreclosure) was 32 percent in Nevada, 25 percent in Florida, 26 percent in Arizona and 21 percent in California, compared with 13 percent in the rest of the nation. These investors are much more likely to default on their mortgages if they see the value of their investments falling due to falling home prices.

“Therefore, the problems in these states will continue, and they will continue to drive the national numbers, but they do not represent a national problem,” Duncan said.

Change from last quarter (first quarter of 2007)

The SA delinquency rate increased 15 basis points for prime loans (from 2.58 percent to 2.73 percent) and 105 basis points for subprime loans (from 13.77 percent to 14.82 percent). The delinquency rate increased 43 basis points for FHA loans (from 12.15 percent to 12.58 percent) and decreased 34 basis points for VA loans (from 6.49 percent to 6.15 percent).

The foreclosure inventory rate increased five basis points for prime loans (from 0.54 percent to 0.59 percent), and increased 42 basis points for subprime loans (from 5.10 percent to 5.52 percent). FHA loans saw a four basis point decrease in foreclosure inventory rate (from 2.19 percent to 2.15 percent), while the foreclosure inventory rate for VA loans decreased three basis points (from 1.05 percent to 1.02 percent).

The SA foreclosure starts rate in the second quarter was 0.65 percent, seven basis points higher than the first quarter of 2007 rate of 0.58 percent. By loan type, the foreclosure starts rate increased two basis points for prime loans (from 0.25 percent to 0.27 percent), 29 basis points for subprime loans (from 2.43 percent to 2.72 percent). The foreclosure start rate decreased 11 basis points for FHA loans (from 0.90 percent to 0.79 percent) and four basis points for VA loans (from 0.41 percent to 0.37 percent).

The seriously delinquent rate, the non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) percentage of loans that are 90 days or more delinquent, or in the process of foreclosure, was up from both last quarter and from last year. This measure is designed to account for inter-company differences on when a loan enters the foreclosure process. During the second quarter, the seriously delinquent rate increased 24 basis points to 2.47 percent from 2.23 percent. The rate increased nine basis points for prime loans (from 0.89 percent to 0.98 percent), increased 94 basis points for subprime loans (from 8.33 to 9.27 percent), decreased eight basis points for FHA loans (from 5.26 percent to 5.18 percent) and decreased 10 basis points for VA loans (from 2.45 to 2.35 percent).

Change from last year (second quarter of 2006)

The SA delinquency rate increased for prime, subprime, and FHA loans and decreased for VA loans. The delinquency rate increased 44 basis points for prime loans, increased 312 basis points for subprime loans, and increased 13 basis points for FHA loans. The delinquency rate for VA loans decreased 20 basis points.

The foreclosure inventory rate increased 18 basis points for prime loans and 196 basis points for subprime loans. The foreclosure inventory rate decreased five basis points for FHA loans and eight basis points for VA loans.

The SA foreclosure starts rate increased 22 basis points overall, nine basis points for prime loans, 93 basis points for subprime loans, four basis points for FHA loans, and two basis points for VA loans.

The seriously delinquent rate was 23 basis points higher for prime loans and 304 basis points higher for subprime loans. The rate decreased 22 basis points for FHA loans and 18 basis points for VA loans.

If you are a member of the media and would like a copy of the survey, please contact Carolyn Kemp at (202) 557-2727 or ckemp@mortgagebankers.org. If you are not a member of the media and would like to purchase the survey, please call (800) 348-8653.

Data are from a proprietary paid subscription service of MBA and are provided to the media as a courtesy, solely for use as background reference. No part of the data may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or redistributed in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise. Permission is granted to news media to reproduce limited data in text articles. Data may not be reproduced in tabular or graphical form without MBA’s prior written consent.

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The above data were obtained in cooperation with the Mortgage Banker’s Association of America (MBA), which produces the National Delinquency Survey (NDS). The NDS, which has been conducted since 1953, covers over 44 million loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties, representing over 80 percent of all “second-lien” residential mortgage loans outstanding in the United States. Loans surveyed were reported by approximately 120 lenders, including mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts.

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The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is the national association representing the real estate finance industry, an industry that employs more than 500,000 people in virtually every community in the country. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the association works to ensure the continued strength of the nation’s residential and commercial real estate markets; to expand homeownership and extend access to affordable housing to all Americans. MBA promotes fair and ethical lending practices and fosters professional excellence among real estate finance employees through a wide range of educational programs and a variety of publications. Its membership of over 3,000 companies includes all elements of real estate finance: mortgage companies, mortgage brokers, commercial banks, thrifts, Wall Street conduits, life insurance companies and others in the mortgage lending field. For additional information, visit MBA’s Web site: www.mortgagebankers.org.

source: 6sep2007

New Mortgage Foreclosures
Set Record

MARTIN CRUTSINGER / AP / Forbes Magazine 6sep2007

WASHINGTON - The number of homeowners receiving foreclosure notices hit a record high in the spring, driven up by problems with subprime mortgages.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Thursday that mortgage-holders starting the foreclosure process in the April-June quarter reached 0.65 percent, marking the third consecutive quarter that this figure has set an all-time high.

The delinquency rate, which tracks the number of people who are behind in their payments but have not yet entered the foreclosure process, was also up sharply during the spring, rising to 5.12 percent of all loans, up nearly three-fourths of a percentage point from the same period a year ago.

Doug Duncan, the MBA's chief economist, said the worsening performance was driven by two factors - heavy job losses in the Midwest states of Ohio, Michigan and Indiana and the collapse of previously booming housing markets in California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona.

The Midwest has been hit hard by a heavy loss of jobs in manufacturing, especially in autos and related industries.

"The percent of mortgages in Ohio that are 90 days or more past due or in foreclosure is still more than twice the national average and 1 percent of all the mortgages in Michigan had foreclosure actions started on them during the last quarter," Duncan said.

He said there were also significant problems in the neighboring states of Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Pennsylvania.

Analysts said the problems in the formerly red-hot housing markets of California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona reflected in part speculators walking away from mortgages they can no longer afford.

During a five-year housing boom, the prices in these areas surged, creating what many analysts have described as a speculative bubble as investors bid up the price of homes hoping to quickly resell them for a profit.

Now with home sales falling, the inventory of unsold homes rising and prices stagnant, some speculators are choosing to default on their mortgages.

Another big problem is that an estimated 2 million adjustable rate mortgages are scheduled to reset this year at sharply higher interest rates, which will cause monthly payments in some cases to double or even triple, a problem that is especially severe in the market for subprime mortgages, loans offered to borrowers with weak credit histories.

The delinquency rate for subprime loans increased sharply to 14.82 percent - up from 13.77 percent - in the first quarter.

The delinquency rate for prime loans, offered to borrowers with good credit histories, also increased but by a much smaller amount, rising to 2.73 percent, up 2.58 percent in the first quarter.

Democrats have blamed predatory lending practices for a large part of the current problems and have introduced a number of bills aimed at helping homeowners stay in their houses.

Federal and banking regulators issued guidance this week encouraging lending institutions to work with borrowers to restructure loans at more favorable terms rather than foreclosing on the existing mortgages.

Last week, President Bush announced changes in the Federal Home Administration insured-loan program to help combat the expected wave of foreclosures and also answer attacks from Democrats that his administration has been slow to respond to a growing crisis in mortgage foreclosures.

source: 6sep2007