Mortgage delinquencies rise; CoreLogic

Plus: Real estate agent brothers charged with sex trafficking

December 13, 2024

🙌 Finally, Friday. Today’s newsletter is 690 words, a 2.5-minute read. Let’s dive in…

Disclaimer: Average mortgage rates as of Dec 12, 2024. © MND Daily Rate Index.

1. Mortgage delinquencies rise; CoreLogic

Mortgage delinquencies reached 3% in September 2024, up 20 basis points year over year, per CoreLogic’s Loan Performance Insights Report.

Early-stage delinquencies (30–59 days past due) rose to 1.6%, while adverse delinquencies (60–89 days past due) grew to 0.5%. Serious delinquencies (90+ days past due) held steady at 0.9%, far below the 2020 peak of 4.3%. Foreclosure rates remained unchanged at 0.3%.

Seventy percent of metro areas saw delinquency rate increases, led by Pine Bluff, AR (+1.1%), Houston, TX (+1%), and New Orleans, LA (+0.8%). Serious delinquencies rose in 116 metros, with Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI (+0.8%) and Houston, TX (+0.6%) seeing the largest spikes. Louisiana (+0.6%) and Texas (+0.4%) led state-level increases.

2. UWM, Better join controversial title insurance waiver pilot

United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) and Better, have joined a Fannie Mae pilot program that removes the need for lender title insurance in certain refinance deals, according to HousingWire.

The program, announced by President Joe Biden in March 2024, aims to lower closing costs as part of his effort to reduce “junk fees.” Approved by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), it’s intended to make homeownership more affordable.

However, the program has faced strong pushback. The title industry says it adds unnecessary market risks, rejecting the “junk fees” label. Some bipartisan lawmakers are also calling for a pause until the program gets a full public review, and many hope the Trump administration won’t support it.

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3. More Nuggets

⚖️ Real estate agent brothers charged with sex trafficking. (CBS News)

📈 Rocket says it’s got the largest pipeline of people wanting to buy homes. (NMP)

🏘️ Can the U.S. climb out of its ‘Unprecedented’ housing crisis? (NYT)

💸 CFPB's final rule would pin overdraft fee at $5. (BankingDive)

🏡 With the election over, homebuyers come out of the woodwork. (Redfin)

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I love Guideline Buddy and so will you! Tune in for how I am using this AI for LO’s. It’s free for our Readers! (Youtube)

— Dave Krichmar CEO

4. CHLA urges CFPB action on trigger leads

The Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA) has urged the CFPB to curb abusive mortgage trigger leads after a legislative amendment addressing the issue was removed from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

CHLA wants the CFPB to use its authority under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to ban these practices, citing deceptive and harassing solicitations following mortgage applications.

“[CHLA] notes with extreme disappointment that Congress has stripped out language that would rein in abusive mortgage trigger leads from the [NDAA] conference report,” the letter stated. “While we understand there may be efforts to find another legislative vehicle for this provision, we believe it is time for administrative action to curb the explosion of deceptive and harassing texts, emails and phone calls that immediately follow a mortgage application.”

5. Mortgage demand is up 5.4%

In what may be a sign of growing confidence in the real estate market, applications for mortgages were up 5.4% for the week ended December 6, 2024 compared to the prior week as mortgage rates fell, according to the MBA’s weekly mortgage applications survey.

“Purchase applications remained relatively strong and have shown annual gains in all but one week over the past three months. Applications increased 5.4% percent, driven by a 27-percent surge in refinance activity, as borrowers with higher rates acted on the chance to lower their payments”

Joel Kan, MBA’s Vice President.

Refinancing continued to show its muscle, accounting for 46.8% of total applications, up from 38.7% during the previous week.

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☀️ You’re all caught up. See you on Monday!

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