Missed a Mortgage Payment? You’re Not Alone

June 3rd, 2010 // filed under: Foreclosures, Jonathan Benya, Market Reports, Mortgages, Selling a Home, Short Sales

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), 10% of homeowners missed at least one mortgage payment in the first quarter of 2010, a new record from the previous quarter’s 9.5% (see the full article at USA Today).  The 10% figure already accounts for ‘seasonal adjustments,’ such as heating costs and holiday expenses that tend to increase mortgage delinquencies during the last quarter of the year; many of the homeowners who were behind catch up in the following spring.  Without the adjustments, the percentage dropped like would normally be expected.

What’s Happening With Foreclosures

Not surprisingly, 4.6% of homeowners were in foreclosure this past quarter, however that is only slightly up from the end of 2009.  While this gives us reason to hope that the foreclosure market is starting to level off and stabilize, as Jay Brinkmann (MBA’s chief economist) said, “A bad situation that’s not getting worse is still bad.”  As the impetus for foreclosures switches from bad loans to unemployment and reduced income, a greater percentage of these foreclosures this year are homeowners with good credit and good payment histories.

Explore Your Options

If you are having problems with meeting your mortgage obligations, don’t wait until you’re facing foreclosure to do something about it.  Contact your lender to see about arranging a reduced payment schedule.  Maybe doing a short sale is your best option.  You never know what’s possible until you reach out for help.  If no other viable options appear to exist for you, then consider walking away from your mortgage.  As always, you can contact myself or Jeff Halbert with any questions you may have.

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