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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 62 J O U R N A L May 2023 J O U R N A L Other major metros with a population of at least one million and foreclosure rates in the top 15 highest nationwide, included Cleveland, Ohio, at second; Chicago, Illi- nois, at sixth; Las Vegas, Nevada, at 10th; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 12th; and Riverside, California, at 14th. Lenders repossessed 12,518 U.S. properties through foreclosure (REO) in the first quarter of 2023, up 8% from the previous quarter and up 6% year over year. Those states that had the greatest number of REOs in the first quarter of 2023 included: » Michigan (1,819 REOs) » Illinois (1,039 REOs) » California (846 REOs) » Pennsylvania (788 REOs) » New York (774 REOs) In terms of the average time to foreclose, properties foreclosed in the first quarter of 2023 had been in the foreclosure process an average of 950 days, the highest number of average days to foreclose since Q1 2018—up 12% from the previous quarter and up 4% from Q1 2022. States reporting the longest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q1 2023 were found in: » Louisiana (2,770 days) » Hawaii (2,486 days) » New York (1,963 days) » Kentucky (1,881 days) » New Jersey (1,697 days) States with the shortest average foreclo- sure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q1 of 2023 were found in: » Wyoming (111 days) » Minnesota (141 days) » Montana (143 days) » Texas (146 days) » Arkansas (157 days) NUMBER OF GSE LOANS IN FORBEARANCE CONTINUES TO DROP T he Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) latest Loan Monitoring Survey reveals that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased by five basis points from 0.60% of servicers' portfolio volume in the prior month, to 0.55% as of March 31, 2023. The MBA estimates that 275,000 home- owners are currently still in forbearance plans. The MBA also reports that mortgage servicers nationwide have provided forbear- ance options and plans to approximately 7.8 million borrowers since March 2020, the outset of the pandemic. In March 2023, the share of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (GSE) loans in forbearance decreased two basis points from 0.28% to 0.26%, while Ginnie Mae loans in forbear- ance decreased 10 basis points from 1.28% to 1.18%, and the forbearance share for portfolio loans and private-label securities (PLS) de- creased 10 basis points from 0.78% to 0.68%. "As the COVID-19 national emergency draws to a close, the number of loans in forbearance continues to drop," said Marina Walsh, CMB, MBA's VP of Industry Analy- sis. "Mortgage performance remains strong with the percentage of borrowers who were current on their mortgage payments and post-forbearance workouts increasing in March." By stage, 33.8% of total loans in forbear- ance were in the initial forbearance plan stage, while 52.9% were in a forbearance extension. The remaining 13.3% represent forbearance reentries, including reentries with extensions. Regionally, the five states with the highest share of loans that were current as a percent of servicing portfolio included Washington, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, and California. The five states reporting the lowest share of loans that were current as a percent of servicing portfolio: Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. "Despite efforts made by government agencies and policymakers to try and reduce foreclosure rates, we are seeing an upward trend in foreclosure activity." —Rob Barber, CEO, ATTOM