Mortgage Picture Improves Despite 7.39 Million Delinquent Loans

The Mortgage Monitor report released today by Lender Processing Services, Inc., a leading provider of mortgage performance data and analytics, showed modest improvements in the number of loans curing to current and reductions in total new delinquencies.

However, the progress is still overshadowed by a large pool (7.39 million) of non-current and REO loans. The report is based on data as of March 2010 month-end.

Overall, the number of non-current loans across the nation has declined over the past six months, but 16 states showed an increase in the number of non-current loans. Total delinquencies, excluding foreclosures, decreased 10.3 percent from February to March 2010, but the total represents a year-over-year increase of 15.7 percent.

March’s foreclosure rate stands at 3.27 percent, representing a month-over-month decrease of 1.2 percent but a year-over-year increase of 32.9 percent. The number of loans moving from seriously delinquent into foreclosure rose in March, after hitting historic lows in February.

The Federal government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) helped improve the level of loan cure rates as trial modifications are converted to official loan modifications. Elevated levels of early-stage cures (loans 30- to 60-days delinquent) indicate a higher rate of self-cures.

Several of the nation’s largest states by population, including Florida, Nevada, New Jersey, Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio showed foreclosure inventories at a higher percentage than the average national foreclosure rate of 3.27 percent.

Other key results from LPS’ latest Mortgage Monitor report include:

Total U.S. loan delinquency rate: 9.12 percent

Total U.S. foreclosure inventory rate: 3.27 percent

Total U.S. non-current* loan rate: 12.39 percent

States with most non-current* loans: Florida, Nevada, Mississippi, Arizona, Georgia, California, Illinois, Rhode Island, New Jersey and Michigan

States with fewest non-current* loans: North Dakota, South Dakota, Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Vermont, Colorado, Iowa and Minnesota

*Non-current totals combine foreclosures and delinquencies as a percent of active loans in that state.