The nationwide loan deterioration ratio is higher than three to one, according to the latest mortgage market report from Lender Processing Services, Inc. (LPS). What this LPS indicator means is that for every one loan improved, three more loans are deteriorating.

The Florida-based company’s November Mortgage Monitor puts that number into perspective. Of home loans that were current as of December 2008, more than two million, or 4.02 percent, were delinquent or in foreclosure by the end of October 2009. LPS said high rates of deterioration are particularly evident in the Northeast and Northwest regions of the country.

Thirty-one states now have non-current loan rates above 10 percent, which includes delinquencies plus foreclosures.

These range from Missouri on the low-end of that spectrum, to as high as 22.7 percent in Florida, according to LPS’ analysis. The non-current loan rate for the entire United States comes in at 12.6 percent.

The national delinquency rate is at a record high 9.4 percent, LPS said in its report. Total delinquencies edged up 0.85 percent in October over September’s figures and were 32 percent higher than the same period last year. While loans rolling to a more delinquent status remain elevated, totals are now below the peak reached in November 2008, LPS said. Roll rates into foreclosure remain low as a result of the industry’s loss mitigation efforts.

Foreclosure sales, though, jumped in October, with the rate at 5.6 percent of foreclosures in inventory, LPS reported. The number of foreclosures on the market continues to stall as foreclosure timelines extend, the company said.

According to LPS, nearly 30 percent of properties that have been in foreclosure for 12 months have not yet been put on the market for sale – twice the level of the prior year. Many analysts say these so-called shadow inventories of properties threaten a housing recovery, as foreclosure inventories continue to climb to record levels.