Mortgage Delinquency Rate Declines 14% in 2012

The national mortgage delinquency rate is defined as the rate of borrowers who are 60 or more days past due on their monthly mortgage payments. The amount of people who fall in this category has declined for the fourth consecutive quarter. Q4 of 2012 saw a mortgage delinquency rate of 5.19% which was down from 5.41% in Q3, and 6.01% in Q4 of 2011. Statistics aside, delinquency is decreasing. This means that as the economy continues to recover with time, more and more people are able to continue paying their monthly payments.

This was the largest yearly decline that the delinquency rate has seen since the recession officially ended, but we still have a long way to go to radically improve life for homeowners. In 2007, delinquencies rose 54%. They rose 53% in 2008 and 50% in 2009. Since then, the decline has been much more gradual than the rise was. It dropped 7% in 2010, 6% in 2011 and now 14% in 2012. We are on the right track but the overall levels are still high compared to where they sat before the recession hit.

If more borrowers can qualify for refinancing, they can obtain lower interest rates that will ultimately lead to lower monthly mortgage payments. This lends to fewer foreclosures and fewer delinquencies. If you are having difficulty paying your mortgage, Quest Loans can help you apply for refinancing. Call us at 888-883-5252 for more information, or visit QuestLoans.com!

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2011 Foreclosure Rate Down 34 Percent

We all know that housing foreclosures have been a big problem for Americans in the past few years. With the shaky economy and high unemployment rates, many people have had issues paying off their mortgages. In 2011, however, it looks as though Americans were given a bit of collective relief. Both the total U.S. foreclosure activity and the U.S. foreclosure rate were at their lowest annual level since 2007. That is good news.

According to RealtyTrac's Year-End 2011 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, there were nearly 2.7 milliion foreclosure filings in 2011. This includes default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions. These were reported on nearly 1.9 million properties, which is actually a decrease of 34 percent in total properties compared to 2010.

This means that approximately 1 in 69 houses had at least one foreclosure filing during 2011.

The reason for this decrease in the total number of foreclosures may have more to do with the dysfunctional foreclosure process than anything. Right now, many houses are hanging in limbo. It seems as though all the paperwork has been a problem, leaving delinquent mortgages at a standstill. However, lenders are finally starting to get some of these delayed foreclosures moving. This may boost foreclosure activity in 2012.

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Monthly Employment Report from the U.S. Labor Dept.

The U.S. Labor Department reported on Friday that the economy's payroll increased in December 2011. This monthly employment report showed that 200,000 jobs were created, well above the 150,000 that was expected. However, a portion of that number is most likely being attributed to seasonal hiring for the holiday shopping season. 

The Unemployment Rate fell from 8.7% in November to 8.5% in December. The rate has been falling for 4 straight months and is currently at its lowest level since February 2009. Even though the rate has been dropping, this economy still leaves 24.4 million Americans either unemployed or underemployed.  

For more information, take a look at MSNBC's article.

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