National mortgage delinquencies increase

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 basis, up 28 basis points from the first quarter of 2007 and up 73 basis points from one year ago, according to the survey.

The delinquency rate does not include loans in the process of foreclosure. The percentage of loans in the foreclosure process was 1.4 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the second quarter, an increase of 12 basis points from the first quarter 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.

National delinquency and foreclosure rates are being driven by what is occurring in a few large states, but the performance of prime and subprime adjustable-rate mortgages also contributes to overall results.

For example, the percentage of mortgages in Ohio that are at least 90 days past due or are in foreclosure is still more than twice the national average, according to Doug Duncan, MBA’s chief economist and senior vice president of research and business development.

Problems also are still significant in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Pennsylvania.

“What continues to drive the national numbers, however, is what is happening in the states of California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona,” Duncan said in a news release. “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.

Special circumstances, including declining home prices, higher inventories of available homes and disproportionately higher shares of investor loans will likely worsen conditions in those states, he noted.

The Mortgage Bankers Association represents employees in the real estate finance industry and has its headquarters in Washington, D.C.[[In-content Ad]]