Defaults on Prime Non-Agency Loans Near 9%

The default rate on prime loans backing private-label securities jumped 214 basis points from April to 8.8% in May, according to a report by Five Bridges Advisors Inc. "In dramatic fashion, the performance of prime loans has deteriorated more severely [in May] than either Alt-A or subprime borrowers," the default report says. [Defaults include loans 90 days or more past due, in foreclosure or real estate owned.] The jump in prime defaults partially reflects the lifting of foreclosure moratoriums, as well as the "very tight credit markets for jumbo loans in the United States and the increase in mortgage rates over the last six weeks," according to analysts at Five Bridges, which is based in Bethesda, Md. Prime loans make up 23.5% of all non-agency mortgage loans with Alt-A making up 41% and subprime 35.5%.