Loss mitigation

Complaints to the bureau hit an all-time high in April. More than one in five said servicers wouldn't grant deferrals, forced borrowers into forbearance or violated other requirements of the coronavirus relief law.

The total coronavirus-related mortgages in forbearance grew by 55 basis points, in lockstep with rising unemployment claims, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The number of loans in forbearance increased by a full percentage point over the past week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The bipartisan coalition of AGs said homeowners should be allowed to wait until the end of a loan term to make payments they skipped because of the coronavirus.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has promised to take care of advances on principal and interest payments for coronavirus forbearances after four months, but servicers remain concerned about other responsibilities.

Future loss mitigation may be most effective if housing-finance industry stakeholders communicate clearly with consumers about these five aspects of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.

Surging unemployment from COVID-19 shutdowns brought a rapidly rising tide of forbearance requests, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The nonprofit that distributed a loss mitigation platform built during the last crisis recently closed, but the technology's creator sees interest in its use for COVID-19-related deferrals.

The volume of COVID-19 forbearance requests has risen rapidly as operational processing has improved and hold times have contracted, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Forbearance requirements under the CARES Act raised immediate concerns about servicing advances and performance, but experts suggest there are other outcomes to brace for, too.