Weather | Traffic | Surf | Maps | Webcam


   
 
Forums Visitors Guide Shopping Classifieds Autos Homes Jobs Entertainment Sports Today's Paper Home

 News
 Metro | Latest News
 North County
 Temecula/Riverside
 Tijuana/Border
 California
 Nation
 Mexico
 World
 Obituaries
 Today's Paper
 AP Headlines
 Business
 Technology
 Biotech
 Markets
 In Depth
 Iraq / Afghanistan
 Pension Crisis
 Special Reports
 Video
 Multimedia
 Photo Galleries
 Topics
 Education
 Features
 Health | Fitness
 Military
 Politics
 Science
 Solutions
 Opinion
 Columnists
 Steve Breen
 Forums
 Weblogs
 Communities
 U-T South County
 U-T East County
 Solutions
 Calendar
 Just Fix It
 Services
 Weather
 Traffic
 Surf Report
 Archives
 E-mail Newsletters
 Wireless | RSS
 Noticias en Enlace
 Internet Access

 Sponsored Links

Home loan troubles break records again


ASSOCIATED PRESS

7:55 a.m. September 5, 2008

WASHINGTON – A record 9 percent of American homeowners with a mortgage were either behind on their payments or in foreclosure at the end of June, as damage from the housing crisis continues to mount, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Friday.


Associated Press file photo
A foreclosure sign stands outside an existing home on the market in Denver. A record 9 percent of American homeowners with a mortgage were either behind on their payments or in foreclosure at the end of June.
But the source of trouble in the mortgage market has shifted from subprime loans made to borrowers with poor credit to homeowners who had solid credit but took out exotic loans with ballooning monthly payments.

The problem is also concentrated in a handful of states, the worst being California and Florida. The real estate markets in those two states were fueled by some of the riskiest lending practices and rampant speculation during the housing boom that has turned into a devastating bust.

“That's clearly the problem,” said Jay Brinkmann, the association's chief economist. “The national numbers are driven by the two largest states” with the most outstanding home loans.

The latest quarterly snapshot of the market broke records for late payments, homes entering the foreclosure process and for the inventory of loans in foreclosure. The trade group's records go back to 1979.

The percentage of loans at least 30 days past due or in foreclosure was up from 8.1 percent in the January-March quarter, using figures that were not adjusted for seasonal factors.

New foreclosures were concentrated in eight states: Nevada, Florida, California, Arizona, Michigan, Rhode Island, Indiana and Ohio.

But for the first time since the mortgage crisis started, delinquencies on subprime adjustable-rate loans declined. While more than one out of every five homeowners with a subprime ARM is still in default, that portion dipped 1 percentage point from the first quarter to 21 percent.

What's driving the delinquency rate up now is the number of homeowners with risky, adjustable-rate prime loans made with little or no proof of the borrowers' income or assets.

Many of these loans allowed the borrower to pay only the interest on the loan for a fixed period of time. Others gave borrower the option to “pick-a-payment,” adding any unpaid interest to the principal balance.

More than one out of 10 borrowers with a prime adjustable-rate loan is now delinquent or in foreclosure. That portion, 11.3 percent, was up from 9.7 percent in the first quarter and is expected to continue to rise as more homeowners see their monthly payments spike.


 Sponsored Links







Quicklinks
Restaurants Bars
Hotels Autos
Shopping Health
Eldercare Singles
Business Listings
Free Newsletters


Guides
Vegas Spas/Salon
Travel Weddings
Wine Old Town
Baja Catering
Casino Home Imp.
Golf SD North
Gaslamp


© Copyright 1995-2008 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. • A Copley Newspaper Site