The national mortgage delinquency rate as of the end of October stood at about 5.1%, an increase of 0.1 percentage points compared with October 2016, when it was 5.2%, according to CoreLogic’s monthly Loan Performance Insights Report.
Most of the 0.1% increase was due to the impact of hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.
Loans that were 30-59 days past due represented 2.3% of all mortgages in October, down 0.1 percentage points from 2.4% in September 2017 and up 0.1 percentage points from 2.2% in October 2016.
Loans that were 60-89 days past due represented 0.9% of all mortgages, up 0.2 percentage points from 0.7% in October 2016.
The serious delinquency rate (90 days or more past due) was 1.9%, down 0.4 percentage points from 2.3% in October 2016.
The serious delinquency rate has been pinned at around 1.9% since June 2017, according to the report. It is the lowest reading since October 2007.
The foreclosure inventory rate, which measures the share of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process, was 0.6%, down 0.2 percentage points from 0.8% in October 2016.
The foreclosure inventory rate has held steady at 0.6% since August 2017, the lowest level since June 2007, when it was also at 0.6%, CoreLogic reports.
Frank Nothaft, chief economist for CoreLogic, says the temporary rise in September’s early-stage delinquencies reflected the impact of the hurricanes in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico.
“But now the impact from the hurricanes is fading from a national perspective,” Nothaft says. “While the national impact is waning, the local impact remains. Some Florida markets continue to see increases in early-stage delinquency transition rates in October, reaching five percent, on average, in Miami, Orlando, Tampa, Naples and Cape Coral. Texas markets such as Houston, Beaumont, Victoria and Corpus Christi peaked at over 7 percent in September, but are on the mend and improving in October.”
“While the national impact of the recent hurricanes will soon fade, the human impact will remain for years,” adds Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic. “For example, the displacement and rebuilding in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina extended for several years and altered the character of the city, an impact that still remains today. The reconstruction of the housing stock and infrastructure impacted by the storms should provide a small stimulus to local economies. This rebuilding will occur against a backdrop of wage growth, consumer confidence and spending in the national economy, which should continue to provide a solid foundation for real estate demand in the storm-impacted areas and beyond.”
