Tag Archives: Mortgage Debt

Outstanding commercial/multifamily debt increased in the third quarter, marking a full year of quarterly increases, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). In dollar volume, commercial/multifamily mortgage debt rose $6.6 billion over the quarter, bringing the national total to $2.38 trillion. The greatest third-quarter increase in commercial/multifamily debt was seen in agency and GSE portfolios and mortgage-backed securities, a sector that reported an increase of $9.4 billion.

When calculating average monthly mortgage payments by state and the District of Columbia, Lending Tree found the nation's capital has the highest average monthly payment and highest share of income that goes toward a house payment.

According to new COUNTRY Financial Security Index survey, a vast majority--88 percent--of respondents think owning their home is important. However, only 45 percent say they think homeownership is feasible for middle-income households. Part of the pessimism regarding respondents' ability to purchase a home may stem from concerns about their savings and the job market. According to the survey, 65 percent of consumers say they wouldn't be able to make mortgage payments after nine months if they lost their job.

The national mortgage delinquency rate fell further in Q3 2012 to 5.41 percent, TransUnion reported Tuesday. The Q3 rate is a decrease from 5.49 percent in Q2 2012 and a near 8 percent drop from 5.88 percent in Q3 2011, according to the credit bureau. While the national delinquency rate has been making progress, Tim Martin, group VP of U.S. housing in TransUnion's financial services business unit, said, "we still have a long way to go to reach more 'normal' conditions of a delinquency rate in the 1-2% range for the U.S. average."

The vast majority of homeowners who refinanced in Q3 2012 either maintained or slashed their loan debt, according to a release from Freddie Mac.

According to the FHFA, the government's Home Affordable Refinance Program is on target to reach a million borrowers this year.

Optimism among bankers continued to rise in the year's third quarter, according to survey results released by the Professional Risk Managers' International Association (PRMIA). The survey, conducted by PRMIA for FICO, showed that the majority of bank risk professionals expect mortgage loan delinquency to either fall or remain the same. PRMIA called the drop in delinquency predictions "encouraging," as sentiment on delinquency usually experiences a dip in the third quarter.

Home equity installment balances rose 0.3 percent in August--the first monthly increase since November 2007, according to Equifax. After plummeting 49 percent over the past four years to just $143 billion, the company contends August's uptick could signal "a possible turning point in mortgage demand." Equifax says amid signs the contraction in mortgage debt is slowing and delinquencies are trending down, it looks like positive growth may finally be taking hold in the mortgage market.

Mortgage delinquency rates fell in August as prepayment rates shot up, Lender Processing Services (LPS) revealed. LPS' August Mortgage Monitor report showed a national delinquency rate of 6.9 percent, consistent with the company's earlier first-look data. Delinquencies were down 2.3 percent from July and 10.6 percent from their January 2010 peak. The drop in delinquency was accompanied by a significant boost in prepayment rates, hitting an annualized rate of nearly 25 percent--a level not seen since 2005.

Alan David Tikal of Brentwood, California, was arrested at his home for a complaint that he scammed more than 1,000 homeowners out of millions of dollars in a fraudulent foreclosure rescue scheme. He allegedly convinced homeowners that he could work out their mortgage debt and replace it was a lower debt to his own company, KATN Trust. Having been instructed to ignore all correspondence from their original lenders, victims paid thousands of dollars in upfront fees and then made regular payments on their new loans.