90-Day Delinquencies Jump Again as Hurricane Fallout Continues
Black Knight, Jacksonville, Fla., said another 60,000 mortgages became 90 days delinquent in December, driven by both continued hurricane-related fallout as well as upward seasonal and calendar-related pressures.
The company’s First Look Mortgage Monitor reported 142,700 90+ days delinquent loans attributed to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, representing 20 percent of all severely delinquent loans nationwide. The report attributed 102,500 severely delinquent loans in affected areas of Florida and Georgia to Hurricane Irma, while another 40,200 resulted from Hurricane Harvey in southeastern Texas.
The report said Florida has now overtaken Mississippi as the state with the largest share of severely delinquent mortgages
Meanwhile, Black Knight said the overall delinquency rate (representing loans 30 or more days past due, but not yet in active foreclosure) also rose another 3.47 percent in December to 4.71 percent, its highest level since early 2016. December’s 6.54 percent year-over-year rise marked the fourth consecutive month of annual increases to the national delinquency rate.
Despite the rise in 90-day delinquencies, the report said foreclosure starts hit a post-recession low in December at 44,500. The inventory of loans in active foreclosure continues to improve, falling 152,000 from last year for a 32 percent annual decline.
Black Knight reported properties 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure at 2.412 million, up by 88,000 from November and up by 164,000 from a year ago. Properties 90 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure totaled 726,000, up by 60,000 from November and up by 44,000 from a year ago.
The report said properties in foreclosure pre-sale inventory fell to 331,000, down by 6,000 from November and down by 152,000 from a year ago. Properties 30 or more days past due or in foreclosure totaled 2.743 million, up by 82,000 from November and up by 12,000 from a year ago.
Black Knight said states with the highest rate of non-current mortgages were Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Alabama and West Virginia; states with the lowest rates were Colorado, North Dakota, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.
