OCC: Home Retentions Nearly Triple Home Forfeiture Actions

Thernpercentage of current and performing mortgages serviced by large national andrnfederal savings banks improved by more than a percentage point during the firstrnquarter of 2014 the Office of the Comptroller of thernCurrency (OCC) said today.  At the end ofrnthe quarter they made up 93.1 percent of the total portfolio of thoserninstitutions compared to 91.8 percent at the end of the fourth quarter and 90.2rnpercent in the first quarter of 2013.</p

According to OCC’s Mortgage Metrics Report, the percentagernof mortgages that were 30 to 59 days past due decreased 19.8 percent from arnyear earlier to 2.1 percent of the portfolio, the lowest level since the OCCrnbegan reporting mortgage performance in 2008.  Mortgages that were 60 or more days past duernor 30 days or more if held by homeowners in bankruptcy decreased to 3.1 percentrncompared with 4.0 percent a year earlier. This is the lowest percentage ofrnseriously delinquent mortgages on the books since June 2008. </p

There were 432,832 mortgages inrnforeclosure at the end of the quarter, a decrease of 52.3 percent from a yearrnearlier.  This is 1.8 percent of allrnoutstanding mortgage and again the lowest percentage in nearly six years.  Foreclosure starts during the quarter were 49.1rnpercent lower than in the first quarter last year at 90,852 and the 56,185rncompleted foreclosures represented an annual drop of 33.9 percent.   OCC credited improved economic conditions, foreclosurernprevention assistance and transfers to servicers not under OCC supervision forrnthe improving distressed loan metrics.  </p

Servicers implemented 237,133 homernretention actions (modifications, trial-period plans, and shorter-term paymentrnplans) in the quarter, a decrease of 32.1 percent from the first quarter ofrn2013.  Though down significantly, retentionrnactions were still over three times the volume of home forfeiture actionsrn(completed foreclosures, short sales, and deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure actions)rnwhich totaled 71,678.  Almost 91 percentrnof modifications in the first quarter of 2014 reduced monthly principal andrninterest payments, and 58.6 percent of modifications reduced payments by 20rnpercent or more, an average of 292 per month. rnModifications made under the Home Affordable Modification Programrnreduced monthly payments by an average of $312.</p

Of over 3.46 million modificationsrnput in place by servicers between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2013, morernthan 60 percent were still active at the end of the first quarter of thisrnyear.  Of these, 69.9 percent wererncurrent and performing at quarter end, 23.9 percent were delinquent, and 6.1rnpercent were in the process of foreclosure.</p

The mortgages in the portfoliornoverseen by OCC and included in its report represent about 48 percent of allrnoutstanding mortgages in the country. There are currently about 24.5 millionrnloans with an outstanding principal balance of $4.1 trillion in the U.S. 

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