Delinquencies on residential mortgages in the third quarter declined on a national recovery in housing prices and other factors, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one- to four-unit residential properties fell 86 basis points to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.99%, as of Sept. 30, compared to a year earlier, the MBA said. That's the lowest level since the first quarter of 2007.
The rate includes loans that are at least one payment late, but are not in the foreclosure process. The percentage of loans in foreclosure, at the end of the third quarter, fell 51 basis points to 1.88%.
The serious delinquency rate — loans that are at least 90 days past due or in the process of foreclosure — fell 108 basis points to 3.57%.
The improvements in delinquency rates were a result of "a nationwide housing market recovery, resolution of long-standing troubled loans...and an improving employment outlook," Marina Walsh, the MBA's vice president of industry analysis, said in a news release.
New Jersey, New York and Florida had the highest percentage of loans in foreclosure among all states, the same as in the second quarter.
