Safeguard Properties

CFPB to Closely Scrutinize How Mortgage Servicers Handle Borrowers Exiting Forbearance

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 11, 2021

Source:  Mortgage Orb

As the COVID-19 related foreclosure moratoriums wind to a close and mortgage servicers brace for a potential wave of defaults, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced that it will be fully enforcing the foreclosure protections put in place in the wake of the Great Recession of 2008 – and that a relaxing of the rules under Regulation X that took effect in April 2020 “will no longer apply.”

Under the protections put in place by the CFPB in the wake of the Great Recession, servicers must offer borrowers who are in financial distress the chance to find alternatives to foreclosure before losing their home.

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post-Moratorium Foreclosure Activity Rises Modestly

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 12, 2021

Source:  Mortgage Daily News

Foreclosure filings increased in the fourth month following the July 31 expiration of the pandemic related moratorium. ATTOM says those filings were up 5.0 percent in October compared to September with 20,587 properties the subject of a default notice, scheduled auction, or actual bank repossession. This represents 76 percent growth from the prior October when the moratorium was in effect.

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tech is Humanizing Mortgage, and it’s Exactly What the Industry Needs

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 11, 2021

Source:  Forbes

Mortgage lenders are under more pressure than seen in decades. Low rates have fueled a refinance boom, and the pandemic has sent purchase volume and home prices soaring. Through the market’s shift, lenders must manage purchases with new, well-funded mortgage fintechs nipping at their heels.

Economists predict rates will rise as economic recovery accelerates. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) projects that 30-year fixed mortgage rates will rise to 4% by 2022, up from 2.8% during 2020, causing the mortgage industry’s origination volume to shrink by 38%.

Challenger lenders are moving in with fresh capital from investors, which have had bright spots in the economy for two years. Now, 57 tech companies that completed fundraising in Q1 2021 are hungry for their piece of the roughly 7 million in projected U.S. home sales, including 6.29 million existing homes and 800,000 new homes. The MBA projects $3.84 trillion in new volume this year, a number that will drop to $2.59 trillion by 2022 (33% refinance, 67% purchase).

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Lending Industry

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 11, 2021

Source:  SFLCN.com

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent recession, households, businesses, and entire nations struggled to determine where to find capital. A massive shock wave hit the public, and sustaining regular operations often seemed bleak. As a result, the United States saw GDP fall 32.9% in Q2 of 2020.

Though the recession in the wake of the novel coronavirus was the shortest on record since 1857, it also meant the lending industry would feel the effects. A disruption in the money supply draws down what is available for borrowing. Many factors steer consumer confidence and subsequently the ability of an organization, or an entire country, to produce.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Mortgage Refinance Programs from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are Expanding to Reach More Homeowners

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 11, 2021

Source:  CNBC

The goal of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s refi programs is to help low-to-moderate income households take advantage of historically low mortgage rates.  Borrowers whose earnings are not above their area’s median income will generally be eligible if they can meet a different requirement.  The average rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is 2.78%, according to real estate site Zillow.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Black Knight: Number of Mortgages in Forbearance Declines

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 12, 2021

Source:  Calculated Risk

Forbearance plan exit volumes increased week-over-week heading into November as the share of mortgage loans in forbearance fell below 2% for the first time since the early stages of the pandemic.

According to our McDash Flash daily mortgage performance dataset, the number of loans in active forbearance fell 123,000 (-10.8%). The week’s strongest declines were among loans held in bank portfolios and private label securities, which recorded a reduction of 59,000 (-15.9%). FHA/VA plans also showed significant improvement, declining by 48,000 (-11.3), while GSE loans in forbearance plans decreased by 16,000 (-4.8%).

As of November 9, 1.01 million mortgage holders remain in COVID-19 related forbearance plans, representing 1.9% of all active mortgages, including 1.2% of GSE, 3.1% of FHA/VA and 2.4% of portfolio/PLS loans.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zombie Foreclosures Dip in Fourth Quarter

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 5, 2021

Source:  The Title Report

Around 1.3 million, or 1.3 percent of residential properties across the country, sit vacant, according to ATTOM’s fourth-quarter 2021 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report.

The report also indicates that 223,256 residential properties are in the process of foreclosure, up 3.6 percent from the third quarter and 11.6 percent year-over-year. Of those, 7,432 are vacant in the fourth quarter, down quarterly by 1.4 percent and annually by 2.4 percent.

The portion of pre-foreclosure properties that have been abandoned into zombie status dropped slightly from 3.5 percent in the third quarter to 3.3 percent in the fourth. One of every 13,292 homes in the fourth quarter are vacant and in foreclosure, down from one in 13,060 in the third quarter and one in 13,074 last year.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MBA: Forbearance Hits Lowest Level Yet

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 9, 2021

Source:  Banker & Tradesman

The share of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans in forbearance has reached the lowest level since the start of the pandemic, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, but an increase in the number of borrowers exiting forbearance into loan modifications points to ongoing struggles in the recovery from the pandemic.

In the final weekly version of its Forbearance and Call Volume Survey, the MBA found that the total number of loans in forbearance decreased by 9 basis points from 2.15 percent of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week to 2.06 percent as of Oct. 31. The MBA estimates that 1 million homeowners remain in forbearance plans

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Freddie Mac Initiative Helps Renters Build Credit

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 3, 2021

Source:  Yahoo! Finance

Freddie Mac today announced a new initiative to help renters build credit by encouraging operators of multifamily properties to report on-time rental payments to the three major credit-reporting bureaus. Presently, less than 10% of renters see their on-time rental payment history reflected in their credit scores, inhibiting their ability to access credit or obtain competitive rates for a range of financial products.  The initiative, which incentivizes rent reporting via technology created by Esusu Financial Inc., will seamlessly deliver on-time rental payment data from property management software platforms to the credit bureaus. It will automatically unenroll renters when missed payments occur, preventing harm to those who struggle financially.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fed Tapering Starts Now, Markets Unfazed

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
November 3, 2021

Source:  inman.com

The Federal Reserve this month will begin tapering the support it’s provided to mortgage rates during the pandemic, reducing its $120 billion in monthly purchases of mortgages and government debt over eight months.

Because the Fed has been broadcasting its intentions for months, mortgage rates aren’t expected to jump right away, as markets have already priced in the Fed’s tapering plans. But forecasters do expect a gradual rise in mortgage rates next year, as the Fed stops growing its mortgage holdings.

The timetable for tapering announced today fits a scenario discussed at the Federal Open Market Committee’s September meeting, and revealed publicly last month with publication of the meeting’s minutes.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.