Mortgage application defects reached a record low in November, according to First American Financial Corp.
The Loan Application Defect Index, created by the Santa Ana, Calif.-based title insurer, dropped for the fourth consecutive month, down 1.3% from October and 8.2% over 12 months. It has reached its lowest level in the history of the index, and is down 23.5% compared to its October 2013 high, according to a Dec. 29 press release.
Still, progress is being felt unequally across the country. "While fraudulent and misrepresentative loan applications are continuing to decline, a few large markets remain at risk," said Mark Fleming, First American's chief economist, in the press release.
"In particular, the concentration of risk in Florida is a concern. All the major metropolitan areas in Florida are above the national average, and Miami ranks second among the top 100 markets nationally."
He added, however, that the risk of misrepresentation in Florida mortgage applications is also trending downwards; it fell 7% in three months.
