Mortgage Delinquencies, Foreclosures Break Records WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of

[Neubarth]

Mortgage Delinquencies, Foreclosures Break Records
Mortgage delinquencies, foreclosures break records - Yahoo! Finance

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of homeowners who missed at least one mortgage payment surged to a record in the first quarter of the year, a sign that the foreclosure crisis is far from over.
More than 10 percent of homeowners had missed at least one mortgage payment in the January-March period, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. That number was up from 9.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year and 9.1 percent a year earlier.
Those figures are adjusted for seasonal factors. For example, heating bills and holiday expenses tend to push up mortgage delinquencies near the end of the year. Many of those borrowers become current on their loans again by spring.
Without adjusting for seasonal factors, the delinquency numbers dropped, as they normally do from the winter to spring.
More than 4.6 percent of homeowners were in foreclosure, also a record. But that number, which is not adjusted for seasonal factors, was up only slightly from the end of last year.

 

[waltky]

740,240 homeowners turned away from federal mortgage modification program...

Promised relief, many instead deeper in debt
March 7, 2011 - Davidson O. Calfee thought a temporary mortgage loan modification was the break he needed to keep his home. It allowed the Sandwich insurance agent to start saving $500 a month in 2009, when his income was down because of the recession.

But instead of being better off, Calfee is now on the edge of a financial abyss. After CitiMortgage Inc. offered to temporarily lower his mortgage payment in July 2009, Calfee, 33, said, he was instructed by the company to send in documents verifying his income and other data so the change could be made permanent. The process was supposed to take a few months, but it dragged on for a year. Calfee’s application was ultimately rejected on grounds he failed to submit the proper paperwork, which he disputes. Overnight, Calfee was in serious trouble. The mortgage payment reverted to its original level, and he was on the hook for 12 months of deferred principal, interest, and fees — a sum that today tops $12,000.

In addition, CitiMortgage reported him to major credit bureaus. The company said that by paying less on his loan, Calfee was technically delinquent on his mortgage, something he found particularly infuriating since he always submitted the amount requested, on time. “I’m facing all sorts of financial doom, including bankruptcy,’’ he said recently. “If we could put things back the way they were, maybe I would have had some options.’’

Nationwide, 740,240 homeowners have been turned away from the $75 billion federal Home Affordable Modification Program, which is facing mounting criticism from housing specialists and even government officials. Many homeowners are actually in worse financial condition simply because they took up an offer to seek mortgage relief. CitiMortgage officials would not comment on Calfee’s case but said the lender has consistently been a “top performer’’ when it comes to federally sponsored loan modifications.

The government launched its loan program in 2009. It said the plan would slow a wave of foreclosures that was threatening to swamp the US economy by offering companies that service mortgages financial incentives to help property owners. The goal was to offer aid to as many as 4 million troubled homeowners, but so far just over 600,000 have received permanent modifications, according to the US Treasury Department, which administers the program. As the numbers have disappointed, the program has come under fire for failing to help as many people as promised, as well as for glitches that may have caused qualified candidates to be rejected. And Republicans in Congress have filed a bill to eliminate the program altogether.

MORE

 

[B. Kidd]

This trend will climb upwards as the year progresses with ballooning gas prices as some of these homeowners are living on the margin as it is.

 

[william the wie]

This trend will climb upwards as the year progresses with ballooning gas prices as some of these homeowners are living on the margin as it is.

There are other factors that are kicking in as well:

Generally the states with the lowest income tax are picking up jobs in this downturn.

There is also an amenities ratio in house prices that has been operating against NY and California for about 50 years for NY and about 20 for CA and in favor of NH, NC, WA, OR, FL, TX, VT and surprisingly to me AK. A lot of that has to do with the fact that the scenery and/or beaches are comparable or better while housing prices are lower in the receiving states. Since the crash that amenities ratio has started to work against the receiving states and is causing secondary crashes in Seattle, Tampa and other receiving areas.

The sinking of gas prices after the current crisis blows over and/or new US oil fields come on line (The Balkin[?] field in the Dakotas) will also cause retooling layoffs in the industrial midwest and less employment in the oil patches will cause another secondary peak in foreclosures.

 

[waltky]

Mortgages gettin' tougher to get...

Mortgage denied: Sometimes, for no good reason
April 19, 2011: Getting a mortgage just keeps getting tougher, and many homebuyers are getting rejected for loans they could easily afford. The issue: Tighter standards from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government entities that back mortgages made by banks.

Banks are reluctant to make loans without the Fannie and Freddie guarantee, and loans backed by them account for just about every mortgage written these days. In 2009, the agencies lifted the minimum credit score that borrowers must have from 580 to 620. That's probably for the best. But they've pushed through a host of other requirements as well, and that means real estate deals don't get done, even for some relatively low-risk borrowers. "You can have one Fannie/Freddie guideline you violate and that gets you rejected," said Alan Rosenbaum of GuardHill Financial.

A quarter of all mortgage loan applicants get denied for loans, according to the Federal Reserve. Many other potential homebuyers never even try to get loans, said Jerry Howard, president of the National Association of Home Builders. "The pendulum has swung too far in the other direction," Howard said. "This overreaction is retarding the housing market recovery." (Homes: What a million bucks buys) Here are some of the reasons that banks must turn down borrowers for mortgages:

Too few of the condos in your association have been sold

For Fannie/Freddie lenders to approve a mortgage to finance purchase of a condo, a large majority of the units -- 70% -- have to be already sold or under contract to individuals. Before 2009, the threshold was 51%. If more than 30% are still owned by the company that built the complex or sponsored its conversion from rental units, the mortgage will be denied, no matter how qualified the buyer is. The reasoning is that condo developments where the builders or sponsors still own a large share of the units are more likely to get into financial difficulty. If the builder or sponsor runs out of funds before it can sell off the units, it may stop paying the common charges and property taxes.

Struggling sponsors have also lost unsold units to creditors, which resold them off at bargain basement prices. That jeopardizes the values of all the condo units, sending borrowers underwater and making them more likely to default. The agencies also refuse to fund condo loans if buildings face some pending legal liability, if more than 15% of owners are behind on homeowner dues or if more than 10% of units are owned by a single entity.

Your debt is too high

 

[william the wie]

Mortgages gettin' tougher to get...

Mortgage denied: Sometimes, for no good reason
April 19, 2011: Getting a mortgage just keeps getting tougher, and many homebuyers are getting rejected for loans they could easily afford. The issue: Tighter standards from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government entities that back mortgages made by banks.

Banks are reluctant to make loans without the Fannie and Freddie guarantee, and loans backed by them account for just about every mortgage written these days. In 2009, the agencies lifted the minimum credit score that borrowers must have from 580 to 620. That's probably for the best. But they've pushed through a host of other requirements as well, and that means real estate deals don't get done, even for some relatively low-risk borrowers. "You can have one Fannie/Freddie guideline you violate and that gets you rejected," said Alan Rosenbaum of GuardHill Financial.

A quarter of all mortgage loan applicants get denied for loans, according to the Federal Reserve. Many other potential homebuyers never even try to get loans, said Jerry Howard, president of the National Association of Home Builders. "The pendulum has swung too far in the other direction," Howard said. "This overreaction is retarding the housing market recovery." (Homes: What a million bucks buys) Here are some of the reasons that banks must turn down borrowers for mortgages:

Too few of the condos in your association have been sold

For Fannie/Freddie lenders to approve a mortgage to finance purchase of a condo, a large majority of the units -- 70% -- have to be already sold or under contract to individuals. Before 2009, the threshold was 51%. If more than 30% are still owned by the company that built the complex or sponsored its conversion from rental units, the mortgage will be denied, no matter how qualified the buyer is. The reasoning is that condo developments where the builders or sponsors still own a large share of the units are more likely to get into financial difficulty. If the builder or sponsor runs out of funds before it can sell off the units, it may stop paying the common charges and property taxes.

Struggling sponsors have also lost unsold units to creditors, which resold them off at bargain basement prices. That jeopardizes the values of all the condo units, sending borrowers underwater and making them more likely to default. The agencies also refuse to fund condo loans if buildings face some pending legal liability, if more than 15% of owners are behind on homeowner dues or if more than 10% of units are owned by a single entity.

Your debt is too high

The market has no dependable bottom and there is a risk of hyperinflation.

 

[waltky]

Shoulda been doin' dat a-fore the subprime bubble burst...

Fed unveils proposal on U.S. mortgage standards
4/19/2011 WASHINGTON — Lenders required to make sure borrowers have the ability to repay a home loan

Lenders would be required to make sure prospective borrowers have the ability to repay their mortgages before giving them a loan, under a proposal released by the Federal Reserve on Tuesday. The rule, which is required by the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, is intended to tighten lending standards and combat home lending abuses that contributed to the 2007-2009 financial crisis. The rule would establish minimum underwriting standards for most mortgages and lenders could be sued by the borrower if they do not take the proper steps to check a borrowers ability to repay the loan.

The law does provide protections from this type of liability if a loan meets the specific standards that are part of a "qualified mortgage." In its proposal, the Fed is seeking comment on two possible ways of defining a qualified mortgage. Under the first scenario the loan could not include interest-only payments, a balloon payment and regular payments could not result in the principle of the loan increasing.

Under the alternative, the loan would have to meet all the standards laid out under the first option and meet additional requirements such as having the lender verify a borrower's employment status and debt obligations. The proposal lays out a general standard for complying with the rule, including verifying a borrowers income, their employment and the amount of debt they have. Mortgage originators who serve rural and underserved areas would be allowed to give out loans with balloon payments.

"This option is meant to preserve access to credit for consumers located in rural or underserved areas where creditors may originate balloon loans to hedge against interest rate risk for loans held in portfolio," the Fed said in a statement. The Fed is seeking comments on the proposal through July 22. The final rule will be implemented by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which opens its doors on July 21.

Fed unveils proposal on mortgage standards - Business - Eye on the Economy - Stocks & economy - msnbc.com

 

[expat_panama]

Mortgage Delinquencies, Foreclosures Break Records
...homeowners who missed at least one mortgage payment surged to a record...

From the article: The mortgage crisis is dragging on... ...Economic woes, such as unemployment or reduced income..."

So much doom'n'gloom demands perspective. Here're the latest numbers from the Fed on past mortgage rates along with other loans--