Performing mortgages increase share slightly, though foreclosures inch up from previous quarter

The share of current, performing mortgages improved slightly at national banks and federal thrifts in the fourth quarter of last year (compared to the year before), reaching 95.8%, their federal regulator said last week.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) said in the same period of 2017, current and performing mortgages were 94.5%.

However, the Friday report also showed that foreclosures – which were down at the end of the 2018 fourth quarter by 14.5% from the previous period in 2017 – inched higher compared with the previous quarter. The OCC said mortgage servicers initiated 29,515 new foreclosures during the fourth quarter of 2018, up 3.5% from the previous quarter.

On the other hand, the OCC reported that mortgage servicers completed 20,256 mortgage modifications in the fourth quarter of 2018, with about three in four (73.2%) reducing borrowers’ monthly payments.

First-lien mortgages at national banks and federal thrifts make up 31% of all residential mortgages outstanding – approximately 16.9 million loans totaling $3.22 trillion in principal balances, the OCC said.

OCC Reports Mortgage Performance Improves in Fourth Quarter of 2018