Delinquencies

Positive payment behaviors in conjunction with CARES Act measures kept mortgage delinquencies from rising, but the number of borrowers facing hardship grew exponentially from last year, according to TransUnion.

More homeowners in Florida and nationwide became delinquent on their mortgage payments in the second quarter compared to the first, according to the Mortgage Banker Association.

Federal Housing Administration mortgages — the affordable path to homeownership for many first-time buyers, minorities and low-income Americans — now have the highest delinquency rate in at least four decades.

Interest rates jumped from a new record low, while Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were widely panned for imposing a refinance fee.

As more borrowers exit their plans, fewer than 4 million loans sit in forbearance, according to Black Knight.

May’s overall delinquency rate was up over 100% from the prior year.

From guidelines for remote appraisal alternatives to the ways that forbearance affects borrowers' ability to get new loans, here are five examples of mortgage requirements that have been in flux since the coronavirus outbreak in the United States.

The enhanced jobless benefits in the coronavirus relief law enacted in March helped limit delinquencies and maintain consumer spending, analysts say. In their follow-up stimulus plan, Senate Republicans want to cut those benefits from $600 to $200 a week.

With coronavirus moratoriums still in place, foreclosures fell to the lowest level since at least 2000, while serious delinquencies ballooned by 1.2 million in June, according to Black Knight.

The measures currently ensuring mortgage companies have sufficient cash to cover advances aren't necessarily sustainable, warns Ted Tozer, a senior fellow at the Milken Institute and a former government official.