Consumer Law

Foreclosure and Modification Data

By Alan White

By Alan White

We now have foreclosure and mortgage modification reports coming from five sources on a periodic basis:  the Mortgage Bankers Association National Delinquency Survey (watch for the 3rd quarter report due the first week of December), the FHFA report on Fannie/Freddie mortgages, the State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group, HOPE NOW and the OCC/OTS mortgage metrics from banks and thrifts.  I have compiled the data into a spreadsheet (Download Excel file here) to facilitate comparisons and tracking of trends.  The different sources cover different segments of the mortage market, which explains some of the variance in the numbers. 

Generally, foreclosure starts and foreclosure sales continue to increase each month.  Modifications increased significantly in the first quarter, but leveled off somewhat over the summer, although HOPE NOW reports a big jump in September.  Foreclosures dipped in September, but that is largely due to the California foreclosure delay resulting from new notice requirements (California and Florida account for 40% of all foreclosure starts).  Expect to see a big jump in October and November when California foreclosures resume.  For now, the crisis continues to deepen, and the voluntary modification effort is still failing to contain the crisis.

Full post as published by CL&P Blog on November 18, 2008 (boomark / email).