Distressed

Despite a healthy economy and booming real estate market, 2.2% of Orange County, Calif., mortgages were "seriously underwater" at year's end, Attom Data Solutions says.

The city's Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion program, born out of the recession in 2008, has prevented nearly 14,000 foreclosures by working with lenders and homeowners to lower mortgage payments.

Mortgage delinquencies dropped to a 40-year low in the fourth quarter as strong employment bolstered borrowers' ability to make timely payments, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

The city's decision to drop a lawsuit alleging predatory ending by Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup highlights the challenges municipalities face in taking on deep-pocketed financial institutions.

Default rates for prime jumbo mortgages will increase, but a strong economy and rising home prices will bail most borrowers and lenders out, Moody's said.

Foreclosure activity during 2019 fell 21% from the previous year, but a few indicators show a change in direction could be possible, according to Attom Data Solutions.

A former Fannie Mae employee is facing more than six years in federal prison for participating in a scam involving discount sales of properties owned by the government-sponsored enterprise.

Jon Leiberman rarely plays the lottery but he felt like he won it this past June.

The nationwide mortgage delinquency rate had its best October in at least two decades, while the foreclosure rate remained at a 20-year for the twelfth straight month, according to CoreLogic.

Vision Property Management has settled accusations made by New York regulators of predatory lending practices for a total of $3.75 million in cash and forgiven mortgage loan balances.