CoreLogic: Mortgage Delinquency Rate Falls
CoreLogic, Irvine, Calif., reported 3.8 percent of mortgages were in some stage of delinquency in July, down from 4.1 percent a year ago.
The company’s monthly Loan Performance Insights Report said 3.8 percent of mortgages were 30 days or more past due or in foreclosure in July, representing an 0.3 percentage point decline in the overall delinquency rate from a year ago.
The foreclosure inventory rate, which measures the share of mortgages in the foreclosure process, equaled 0.4 percent in July, down 0.1 percentage points from a year ago. The July foreclosure inventory rate tied the prior eight months as the lowest for any month since at least January 1999, CoreLogic said.
“Homeowners have seen a big rise in home equity, which lowers foreclosure risk because owners have more ‘skin in the game,'” said CoreLogic Chief Economist Frank Nothaft. He noted average equity per borrower increased from $75,000 to $176,000 between early 2011 and mid-2019 and rose $5,000 in the past year alone.
The nation’s overall delinquency remains near the lowest level since at least 1999, CoreLogic said. But four states posted small annual increases in overall delinquency rates in July: Vermont (0.5 percentage points), New Hampshire (0.2 percentage points), Iowa (0.1 percentage points) and Minnesota (0.1 percentage points).
Several states posted small annual gains in the share of mortgages that transitioned from current to 30 days past due in July: Vermont (0.3 percentage points), New Hampshire (0.1 percentage points), Iowa (0.1 percentage points), Wisconsin (0.1 percentage points) and Florida (0.1 percentage points).
In July, 37 metropolitan areas recorded small increases in overall delinquency rates. Some of the highest gains were in the Midwest and Southeast. Metros with the largest increases included Dubuque, Iowa (2.5 percentage points), Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa-Illinois (1.5 percentage points) and Pine Bluff, Ark. (1.1 percentage points). Panama City, Fla., and Goldsboro, N.C., both experienced 0.5 percentage point increases.
CoreLogic said the rate for early-stage delinquencies between 30 and 59 days past due was 1.8 percent in July, down from 1.9 percent in July 2018. The share of mortgages 60 to 89 days past due held steady from a year ago at 0.6 percent. The serious delinquency rate for loans 90 days or more past due or in foreclosure equaled 1.3 percent in July, down from 1.6 percent in July 2018.
This July’s serious delinquency rate was the lowest for the month of July since 2005 when it also equaled 1.3 percent, CoreLogic reported; it tied the April, May and June 2019 rates as the lowest for any month since August 2005.
“The fundamentals of the housing market remain very solid with foreclosure rates hitting lows not seen in over 20 years,” said CoreLogic President and CEO Frank Martell. “We expect foreclosure rates may very well drift even lower in the months ahead as wage growth and lower mortgage rates provide support for homeownership.”
