Delinquencies sink to 12-month low

Mortgage delinquencies across the US fell to a 12-month low in March, driven by seasonal effects and continued hurricane-related improvements, according to Black Knight’s first look at month-end mortgage performance statistics.

Black Knight found that the total US loan delinquency rate, which represents loans 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure, was at​ 3.73% in March, marking a year-over-year change of 3.09%. The delinquency rate declined 13.24% compared to February.

A decline in hurricane-related delinquencies contributed to the improvement in the number of serious delinquencies, or those 90 or more days past due but not yet in foreclosure. Seriously delinquent properties totaled 632,000 in March, posting a decline of 65,000 properties from February. Black Knight said that serious delinquencies attributable to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma saw a reduction of 19,500 loans.

As the effect of the hurricanes shift away from delinquencies, Black Knight found that foreclosure starts rose substantially during the month. There were a total of 52,100 foreclosure starts across the US in March, an 11.56% increase compared to February. The March total, however, marked a 13.6% year-over-year decline. According to Black Knight, more than two-thirds of the increase in foreclosure starts came from the hurricane-affected areas in Texas and Florida.

March data also revealed a continuous improvement in the active foreclosure inventory. The total dropped another 10,000 loans in March to its lowest level since late 2006. Additionally, Black Knight found that prepayment activity during the month rose by 22% from February’s 4-year low. The improvement came despite interest rates remaining above 4.4%.