Principal reductions for underwater borrowers would cost approximately $89 billion, according to a report released Thursday by Black Knight.
The Jacksonville, Fla.-based analytics firm said that four million homeowners — or approximately 8% of all borrowers nationwide — have negative equity in their homes. That represents a sharp reduction from two years earlier, when more than one-third of all borrowers owed more on their mortgages than their homes were worth.
"There is understandably a great deal of debate around
"With an aggregate the 40% delinquency rate among borrowers with current combined loan-to-value ratios above 100%...the scope and cost of such writedowns would be immense."
Bringing underwater borrowers to positive equity positions would also require $18 billion in writedowns on delinquent loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Barnes said.
Underwater mortgages represent approximately $800 billion in total mortgage debt — 20% of which is in negative equity.
