HOPE NOW: Loan Mods Rise in November

HOPE NOW reported an increase in mortgage modification actions, as well as foreclosure actions, in November, but noted that serious delinquencies continued to fall toward pre-crisis levels.

HOPE NOW, a voluntary, private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers and non-profit counselors of which the Mortgage Bankers Association is a founding member, said its members reported 107,000 mortgage modifications, short sales, deeds in lieu and workout plans in November, compared to 21,500 foreclosure sales. Both figures represented increases from October but decreases from a year ago.

Additionally, HOPE NOW reported decreases in serious mortgage delinquencies from both October (5 percent) and a year ago (14 percent), which Executive Director Eric Selk said suggested the housing finance market is reaching “new norms.”

“Serious delinquency remains key indicator of positive market stability,” Selk said. “HOPE NOW tracks those homeowners who are 60+ days delinquent and we have reported a steady total of just under 1.4 million borrowers in November. This is significant decrease from the nearly 2 million borrowers who were seriously delinquent just 24 months ago.”

HOPE NOW estimated 29,000 permanent loan modifications in November, including modifications completed under both proprietary programs (19,000) and the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (10,428). These figures represented an increase of 5 percent from October (27,000) and an increase of 12 percent from a year ago (26,000).

Other key metrics from November vs. October:

–Short sales: 4,700 in November vs. 4,300 in October, a decrease of 8%.
–Deed in-lieu: 1,300 in November vs. 1,300 in October, unchanged.
–Foreclosure starts: 48,000 in November vs. 46,000 in October, an increase of 4%.
–Foreclosure sales: 22,000 in November vs. 19,000 in October, an increase of 11%.
–Serious delinquencies: 1.40 million in November vs. 1.47 million in October, a decrease of 5%.

November vs. One Year Ago:

–Short sales: 4,300 in November vs. 5,500 in November 2015, a decrease of 21%.
–Deed in-lieu: 1,300 completed in November vs 1,300 completed in November 2015, unchanged.
–Foreclosure starts: 48,000 in November vs. 46,000 in November 2015, an increase of 3%.
–Foreclosure sales: 22,000 in November vs. 24,000 in November 2015, a decrease of 11%.
–Serious delinquencies: 1.40 million in November vs. 1.62 million in November 2015, a decrease of 14%.

The full data set for November 2016 is available at www.hopenow.com.