Black Knight Financial Services recently reported a spike in mortgage delinquencies that were the largest monthly rise in more than eight years. Their First Look report for April 2017 is taken from month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database representing the majority of the national mortgage market. According to the report:
- First-lien mortgage delinquencies rose by 13 percent, the largest monthly increase since November 2008
- Month-over-month, the number of borrowers past due on mortgage payments increased by 241,000
- April’s delinquency rate increase was primarily calendar-driven (due to both the month ending on a Sunday and March being the typical calendar-year low) and largely isolated to early-stage delinquencies
- The inventory of loans in active foreclosure continues to decline, hitting a 10-year low in April
- At just 52,800, April saw the fewest monthly foreclosure starts since January 2005
- Prepayment speeds (historically a good indicator of refinance activity) fell by 11 percent from March
Click here to read the full report.
