Ocwen's Paul Koches offers insight into the industry's slow pace when it comes to mortgage modifications. Koches says the assumption that servicers make more money from foreclosures than modifications just isn't true. He explains the operational and technical obstacles that can hamper the modification process and offers concrete imperatives that could streamline and accelerate the loan modification drive.
The default rate on commercial real estate mortgages held by U.S. banks closed out 2009 more than double what it was a year earlier. Real Capital Analytics has reported that the default rate on loans made for office, retail, hotel, and industrial spaces shot up to 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, compared to 1.6 percent for the same period in 2008. Defaults on multifamily mortgages soared even higher - a staggering 250 percent - with the rate jumping from 1.8 percent to 4.4 percent.
Freddie Mac reported Wednesday that it lost $7.8 billion, or $2.39 per diluted common share, in the fourth quarter of 2009. The three-month results pushed the GSE's full year net loss to $25.7 billion. For the third consecutive quarter, the mortgage financier said it doesn't need any additional capital from the Treasury, but indicated that might change as early as next month, and warned that conditions could worsen with a "potential large wave of foreclosures" still expected.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has put forth a concept for a new forbearance program that would allow borrowers who've lost their jobs to remain in their homes for up to nine months. MBA cites recent statistics that show it takes the average unemployed worker six to seven months to find a new job. MBA says once new employment is secured, the program would serve as a "bridge" for the borrower to be considered for the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
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