66% of delinquent mortgages untouched
DsNews.com
According to a new report from state attorneys general and bank supervisors from across the country, more than 60% of homeowners with seriously delinquent loans are still not involved in any form of loss mitigation with their servicer. The ratio is disconcerting considering the group also found that one of servicers’ primary loss mitigation options today, loan modifications, are resulting in significant payment reductions with fewer redefaults.
The State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group says loans modified in 2009 are 40 to 50% less likely to be seriously delinquent six months after modification than loans modified at the same time in 2008. “This improvement in loan modification performance suggests that dire predictions of high redefault rates may not come true,” the group said in a paper released Tuesday. “This positive trend suggests that increased use of modifications resulting in significant payment reduction has succeeded in creating more sustainable loan modifications.”
The consortium of state regulators and chief attorneys also found that recent modifications that significantly reduce the principal balance of the loan have a lower rate of redefault compared to loan modifications overall, suggesting that servicers should strategically increase their use of principal reduction modifications to maximize prospects for success. Principal writedowns, though, have been slow in finding their way into the mod equation. The group’s study shows that only one in five modifications reduce the loan principal, and in fact, some 70% actually increase the loan amount by adding servicing charges and late payments to the loan balance.
