Tag Archives: Principal Writedown

FHFA Acting Director Edward DeMarco released a statement Tuesday reiterating his stance that offering principal reduction for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans is not in the best interest of the GSEs and taxpayers. DeMarco has faced a barrage of criticism for not allowing the GSEs to apply the Home Affordable Modification Program Principal Reduction Alternative (HAMP PRA) program to underwater loans and has been urged by lawmakers to reconsider his position. After what DeMarco said was extensive analysis, he stated, ""FHFA has concluded that the anticipated benefits do not outweigh the costs and risks.""

In a commentary, Fitch stated the proposed uses of eminent domain in California could negatively affect private label RMBS performance. Recently, the board of supervisors of San Bernardino County voted to form a joint powers authority with California cities Fontana and Ontario to look into the option of using eminent domain to seize underwater mortgages. Fitch said one proposal, which is of particular concern, indicates that only current and delinquent mortgages, not those in foreclosure, would be eligible. Thus, borrowers who would have stayed current on their payments could have their mortgage seized by the local, state, or county government. If eminent domain was to be used in such a way, then holders of the seized homes could experience losses, Fitch said.

While negative equity still continues to hinder the housing market's recovery, CoreLogic reported Thursday that the share of underwater mortgages declined. In the first quarter of 2012, the total number of underwater homes was 11.4 million, accounting for 23.7 percent of all residential properties with a mortgage. In the fourth quarter of 2011, 12.1 million properties, or 25.2 percent, were underwater. In addition, more than 700,000 households saw their equity move into the positive territory in the first quarter of this year.

The most significant impact of the $25 billion robo-signing settlement has been the clarification of foreclosure standards for servicers, which has led to a higher number of initiated foreclosures, Fitch Ratings said in a note. Foreclosure initiation rates rose to roughly 12 percent in June, the highest figure since first half-2009, according to Fitch. While there has been an increase in principal reductions, Fitch said the growing use of principal reduction may be a continuation of an earlier trend, not a result of the settlement. In February, state and federal officials reached a landmark settlement with five of the largest servicers - Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citi, and Ally over foreclosure practices.

Once again, data compiled in the Obama administration's Housing Scorecard pointed to both signs of promise and reasons for concern. One positive indicator for housing was the 7.4 percent rise in home equity to $457.1 billion in the first quarter of 2012. On the downside, the impact of serious delinquencies and underwater mortgages continues to strain the housing market. One popular administration program for underwater borrowers is the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). So far, HUD Acting Assistant Secretary Erika Poethig said almost half a million families have taken advantage of the program, and refinanced families save an average of $2,500 per year.

In San Bernardino County, an idea is being explored that would apply the concept of eminent domain to solve the problem of underwater homes in the area. Through eminent domain, the government can take private property from an owner if it can be argued that a greater public interest would be served by doing so. The use of eminent domain proposed in San Bernardino County involves the forced purchase of homes from underwater borrowers at ""fair"" market value.

Amherst Securities recently released a report declaring that principal reduction modifications, without question, are the most effective form of modification. Between three types of modifications - principal, rate, and capitalization - the controversial and much-debated principal reduction mod was found to be the most effective based when it comes to its 12-month re-default rate. For 2011 modifications, the re-default rate after 12 months for principal modifications was 12 percent compared to 23 percent for rate modifications and 30 percent for capitalization modifications, according to the report.

Reperforming and nonperforming loans decreased $6.1 billion to $528.6 billion in May compared to the previous month of April for private label mortgage backed securities (MBS), according to a report from Amherst Securities Group. The decrease came after a reduction of $6.4 billion in the non-performing bucket and a $0.3 billion growth in the re-performing bucket, reflecting elevated liquidations and a slowdown of new defaults, Amherst stated in the report.

About 15.7 million U.S. homeowners were underwater in the first quarter of 2012, according Zillow's Negative Equity Report released Thursday. Yet, most underwater homeowners are current on their mortgages, with nine in 10 continuing to make their payments on time. Also, just 10.1 percent of underwater homeowners are more than 90 days delinquent, Zillow reported.

Through the $25 billion robo-signing settlement between federal and state officials and the five largest banks - Bank of America, Citi, J.P. Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Ally - $10 billion was set aside for principal reductions. According Fitch Ratings, the funds set aside for writing down principal will have little impact on private label residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). Fitch stated that the private label result of principal reduction through the settlement will likely reach only 10 percent of underwater borrowers. Overall, Fitch estimates there is about $203 billion in negative equity for private-label RMBS.