Foreclosures

While the number of loans with payments that have been late for three months or more has fallen, it’s still higher than in early 2020, according to Black Knight.

The 36% consecutive-month drop could mark the start of a period in which a small wave of financially distressed homeowners sell their homes through alternative means, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Roughly 24,000 people had new foreclosures listed on their credit reports in the first quarter, up from about 9,000 three months earlier, a Federal Reserve Bank of New York report says. States are trying to cushion the blow on homeowners now that many pandemic-related federal protections have ended.

The legislation, awaiting the governor’s signature, overturns a state court ruling that made it easier for lenders to restart the six-year statute of limitations timeline.

Strong general unemployment gains, student loan deferrals and borrowers enjoying low interest rates secured in the refinance boom contributed to the positive gains.

While numbers have been increasing, it will be some months before they get back to pre-pandemic levels, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Even though the majority of forbearance plans have ended, late payments continued their downward trend in January.

Servicers of Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed loans should hit pause for up to 60 days once they know the borrower has sought relief, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Laws in at least a dozen states allow municipalities or investors to acquire valuable property to satisfy tax liens far below the asset’s value, a legal organization said.

While smaller in number, initiated foreclosures had a similar consecutive-quarter gain as the market transitioned away from pandemic-related relief that has artificially constrained workout activity.