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78 Massachusetts RANK: 21 90+ Day Foreclosure Unemployment Delinquency Rate Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 2.76% 1.67% 4.9 YEAR AGO 3.52% 1.66% 6 YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -21.7% 0.2% -1.1 Top County FRANKLIN COUNTY 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 4.67% 3.80% YEAR AGO 5.49% 3.22% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -15.0% 18.0% Top Core-Based Statistical Area GREENFIELD TOWN, MA 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 4.67% 3.80% YEAR AGO 5.49% 3.22% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -15.0% 18.0% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the February 2015 foreclosure rate. All fi gures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate refl ects preliminary February 2015 fi gures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. IN THE NEWS Massachusetts AG Assists Homeowners Who Benefited from Unlawful Foreclosure Settlement e office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey has launched a web- site to assist homeowners who benefited from a $2.7 million settlement with four national banks to resolve claims of unlawful foreclo- sures in the state, according to an announce- ment from Healey's office. e website will provide assistance to eligible homeowners who are looking to start anew by clearing property HEDs, thus allowing them to either refinance or sell their properties. "rough this settlement, we are empow- ering residents who may have been unable to refinance their mortgage loans or sell their properties because of these unlawful fore- closures," Healey said. "is website enables consumers to file online complaints and have their HED issues reviewed by the banks in a single process." e settlement was reached between four banks (Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo) and the AG in January in Suffolk Superior Court to resolve claims that the banks lacked legal authority to foreclosure on homes when they did not own the mortgages on those homes. Under Massachusetts law, the bank or foreclosing party must either be the mortgage holder on record or hold the mortgage through valid assignment prior to publishing the notice of foreclosure sale. As part of the settlement, the four banks agreed to pay a combined $2.7 million to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Of that money, $700,000 was allocated to the AG's Local Consumer Aid Fund, and the remaining $2 million was paid to the Com- monwealth's General Fund. e banks also agreed to provide non-monetary assistance to help borrowers resolve their HED defects that resulted from improper foreclosures con- ducted after December 1, 2007. e bank will review each complaint and determine if the HED defect resulted from a void foreclosure, and if so, the bank will provide the documen- tation to facilitate the clearing of the HED so that the homeowner may either pursue refinancing or sell the property. GMAC Mortgage, which filed for bankruptcy in 2012, was named as one of the defendants in the case; the AG's office is continuing to negotiate a settlement with the company, according to Healey's announce- ment. New Hampshire RANK: 33 90+ Day Foreclosure Unemployment Delinquency Rate Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 1.85% 1.01% 3.9 YEAR AGO 2.16% 1.10% 4.6 YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -14.3% -8.7% -0.7 Top County SULLIVAN COUNTY 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 2.43% 2.26% YEAR AGO 3.12% 1.87% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -22.1% 20.9% Top Core-Based Statistical Area CLAREMONT-LEBANON, NH-VT 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 1.77% 1.71% YEAR AGO 2.24% 1.37% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -21.0% 24.7% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the February 2015 foreclosure rate. All fi gures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate refl ects preliminary February 2015 fi gures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. New Jersey RANK: 1 90+ Day Foreclosure Unemployment Delinquency Rate Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 3.10% 5.27% 6.4 YEAR AGO 3.41% 6.70% 7 YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -9.2% -21.4% -0.6 Top County SALEM COUNTY 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 5.49% 9.08% YEAR AGO 5.52% 11.54% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -0.5% -21.3% Top Core-Based Statistical Area VINELAND-BRIDGETON, NJ 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate FEBRUARY 2015 6.90% 8.32% YEAR AGO 6.88% 10.38% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE 0.4% -19.8% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the February 2015 foreclosure rate. All fi gures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate refl ects preliminary February 2015 fi gures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. The number of foreclosure deeds in Massachusetts for February, a 14.6 year- over-year decline. Source: The Warren Group STAT INSIGHT 311