Chart of the Week
Every Friday, MBA's Chart of the Week provides commentary and analysis on a topic of interest for the industry. This comes from variety of data sources, including proprietary data from MBA's own surveys and studies, as well as from government agencies and other reliable sources of mortgage, housing, and economic data.
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Current Chart of the Week
According to the latest results from MBA’s National Delinquency Survey (NDS) released earlier this week, the delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased 6 basis points from the previous quarter to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.04 percent of all loans outstanding by the end of the first quarter of 2025. The delinquency rate includes loans that are at least one payment past due but does not include loans in the process of foreclosure. The percentage of loans in the foreclosure process at the end of the first quarter was 0.49 percent, up 4 basis points from the past quarter.
The overall national delinquency and foreclosure rates remain below historical averages for now. However, certain segments of borrowers are having difficulty making their mortgage payments. Spreads in mortgage delinquency rates between conventional loans and government loans remain wide. In addition, this week’s Chart of the Week shows foreclosure inventories increasing across all three loan types since the beginning of the year, and particularly for VA loans. The percentage of VA loans in the foreclosure process rose to 0.84 percent, the highest level since the fourth quarter of 2019. The increase from the previous quarter marks the largest quarterly change recorded for the VA foreclosure inventory rate since the inception of MBA’s survey in 1979.
A voluntary VA foreclosure moratorium was in effect through the end of 2024 to allow time to implement the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) Program. That program has since ended without a replacement loss mitigation option approved by Congress. Further increases in the foreclosure rate could result if economic conditions worsen and loan workout options are unavailable.
- Marina B Walsh, CMB (mwalsh@mba.org); Anh Doan (adoan@mba.org)