Mortgage delinquency, foreclosure rates soar

Philadelphia Inquirer, The, June, 2008 by Alan J. Heavens Inquirer Real Estate Writer

Mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates soared nationally in the first quarter from the comparable 2007 period, with 89 percent of the increase coming in already hard-hit California, Florida and Nevada. The Mortgage Bankers Association Delinquency Survey, which covers 45.2 million first-lien mortgages on one- to four-unit residential properties, showed that the delinquency rate rose to 6.35 percent of all loans in the 2008 quarter, from 4.84 percent of all loans in the first quarter of 2007.

What this means in numbers is that of the nation's 45.2 million mortgages, 287,172 were at least one payment behind. A year ago, when there were 43.9 million loans, the comparable number was 212,476 loans. The 30-year delinquency rate is still below levels seen as recently as 2002,...