Mortgage Loans In Forbearance Decrease For The 11th Straight Week

The Mortgage Bankers Association's latest Forbearance and Call Volume Survey reported that the total number of loans now in forbearance decreased from 5.67% to 5.47%. This marks the 11th consecutive week that mortgage loans in forbearance have seen a dip.

The MBA reports that the share of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans in forbearance fell by 25 basis points to 7.70%. Additionally, the forbearance share for portfolio loans and private-label securities decreased by 32 basis points to 8.38%. Meanwhile, the percentage of loans in forbearance for independent mortgage bank servicers slipped 25 basis points to 5.94% and the percentage of loans in forbearance for depository servicers fell 17 basis points to 5.43% from the previous week, according to the report.

According to the MBA, the total weekly forbearance requests as a percent of servicing portfolio volume decreased from 0.10% to 0.08%.

"Declines in the share of loans in forbearance continued this week, with a significant increase in the rate of forbearance exits - particularly for portfolio and PLS loans," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA's senior vice president and chief economist. "More than 76 percent of borrowers in forbearance are now in an extension, as we are well past the six-month point for most borrowers' forbearance plans."

"While the rate of new forbearance requests has declined and exits are increasing, homeowners who continue to be impacted by hardships related to the pandemic should contact their servicer for relief," he continued.

As for service call center volume, the MBA reported a slight increase in the calls as a percent of servicing portfolio volume from 8.1% to 8.3%. There has also been a slight increase in the speed to answer calls at 2.3 minutes, down from 2.4 minutes in the previous report. Notably, the average call length increased slightly from 7.9 minutes to 8 minutes, a survey high.

Click here to view the full Forbearance and Call Volume Survey.