Mortgage Delinquency Rates Continue to Decline

Five percent of mortgages were in some stage of delinquency during September, according to new data from CoreLogic. This represents a 0.2 percentage point year-over-year decline.

 

Also in September, the foreclosure inventory rate was 0.6 percent, down from 0.8 percent one year earlier. Both the August and September foreclosure inventory rates were the lowest since June 2007, when it was also 0.6 percent, while the September foreclosure inventory rate was the lowest for the month of September since the 0.5 percent level in September 2006.

 

The rate for early-stage delinquencies—30-59 days past due—was 2.4 percent in September, up 0.3 percentage points from 2.1 percent in September 2016. The share of mortgages that were 60-89 days past due in was 0.7 percent, unchanged from the previous year, while the serious delinquency rate—90 days or more past due—dropped by 0.4 percentage points year over year from 2.3 percent in September 2016 to the latest reading of 1.9 percent. The September level is the lowest for any month since October 2007 when it was also 1.9 percent, and the lowest for the month of September since 2007 when it was 1.8 percent.

 

"While natural hazard risk was elevated in 2017, the economic fundamentals that drive mortgage credit performance are the best in two decades," said Frank Martell, President and CEO of CoreLogic. "The combination of strong job growth, low unemployment rates, steady economic performance and prudent underwriting has led to continued improvement in mortgage performance heading into next year."

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