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» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 49 FORECLOSURE INVENTORY DOWN 31% IN 2013, SLOW PROGRESS EXPECTED IN 2014 National foreclosure inventory fell 31 percent year-over-year in December, with 2.1 percent of all homes with a mortgage in some stage of foreclosure, according to CoreLogic's December National Foreclosure Report. Completed foreclosures also declined year- over-year in December, though at a somewhat lower rate of 14 percent, according to CoreLogic. Despite declines, foreclosures remain elevated compared to historical norms. From 2000 through 2006, about 21,000 foreclosures were completed each month. In December, 45,000 foreclosures were completed, down from 47,000 in November and 52,000 in December 2012. "Clearly, 2013 was a transitional year for residential property in the United States," said Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic. "Higher home prices and lower shadow in- ventory levels, together with a slowly improving economy, are hopeful signals that we are turning a long-awaited corner," Nallathambi said. However, he anticipates "progress to remain very slow" this year. Five states accounted for nearly half of all completed foreclosures in 2013. ose states included Florida with 119,000 foreclosures, Michigan with 53,000 foreclosures, California with 39,000 foreclosures, Texas with 39,000 fore- closures, and Georgia with 35,000 foreclosures completed over the year. At the other end of the spectrum, the five states with the fewest foreclosures completed in 2013 were the District of Columbia with 63 foreclosures, North Dakota with 417 foreclosures, Hawaii with 493 foreclosures, West Virginia with 505 foreclosures, and Wyoming with 759 foreclosures. e states ranking highest for the percent- age of foreclosure inventory as of year-end is not consistent with the list of states with the highest numbers of completed foreclosures over the year, except that Florida ranked highest in both categories. In Florida, 6.7 percent of all homes with a mortgage are in some stage of foreclosure. Florida is followed by New Jersey (6.5 per- cent), New York (4.9 percent), Connecticut (3.6 percent), and Maine (3.6 percent). States with the smallest foreclosure inven- tory rates in December were Wyoming (0.4 percent), Alaska (0.5 percent), North Dakota (0.6 percent), Colorado (0.6 percent), and Nebraska (0.6 percent). In total, 4.8 million foreclosures have been completed since the start of the housing crisis in September 2008, according to CoreLogic. Start your day with a professional pick-me-up. Start your day with the most current and critical news on the mortgage default servicing industry from DSNews.com. Sign up for our e-mail newsletter and get the top stories delivered direct to your inbox every day. Register to receive your Daily Dose at DSNews.com FHFA ANNOUNCES HARP MILESTONE e Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have reached the milestone of 3 million re- finances under the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). e 3 million mark is a significant step in achieving the FHFA's goal of broader use of HARP. "ree million HARP refinances is an important accomplishment and represents real help to families and communities still strug- gling as a result of the mortgage crisis," said FHFA director Mel Watt. "We are continuing our efforts to make sure that those who can take advantage of this program have the information they need to do so." In November, the GSEs together reported 38,732 HARP refinances, bringing 2013's year-to- date total to 862,892. Out of those, 25,689 were for mortgages with loan-to-value (LTV) ratios between 80 and 105 percent; 7,612 were for loans with 105 to 125 percent LTV, while the remainder were for 125+ percent LTV loans. In addition, FHFA announced it completed more than 3 million foreclosure prevention actions, which include loan modifications, short sales, and other programs. Since the government's conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2008, more than 18 million mortgages have been refinanced through the GSEs. Last year, FHFA extended the deadline for HARP to December 31, 2015.

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