Residential mortgage delinquencies dropped in the fourth quarter, as employment numbers improve and housing prices increase, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties fell 91 basis points to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.77%, as of Dec. 31, compared to a year earlier. That's the lowest level since the third quarter of 2006. The rate includes loans that are at least one payment late, but are not in the foreclosure process.
The figures were released in the MBA's quarterly National Delinquency Survey.
The percentage of loans in foreclosure, at the end of the fourth quarter,
The serious delinquency rate, defined as loans that are at least 90 days past due or in the process of foreclosure, fell 108 basis points to 3.44%.
"As the job market has improved and national home prices have rebounded, fewer borrowers were becoming seriously delinquent," Marina Walsh, the MBA's vice president of industry analysis, said in a news release.
"Borrowers previously behind on their payments were in a better position to pursue alternative options to resolve delinquent loans," Walsh said.
Five states, all located in areas with a large exposure to the energy sector, saw an increase in new foreclosures during the fourth quarter: Oklahoma, North Dakota, Colorado, Texas and Louisiana. Meanwhile, the national average for new foreclosures trended downward.
