Owners behind on mortgages rising
Two new reports suggest that a wave of foreclosures is threatening to land on homeowners in Ohio and throughout the U.S.
In August – the most recent month for data – the number of homeowners seriously behind on their mortgages jumped, as millions of Americans remained jobless because of the coronavirus pandemic.
In Ohio, 3.8% of homeowners were at least 90 days behind on their loans, more than double the 1.6% from the previous August, according to the mortgage and real-estate service Corelogic.
Nationally, 4.3% of mortgages were seriously delinquent (at least 90 days behind) in August, up from 1.3% a year earlier and the highest level since February 2014.
Mortgages at least 150 days delinquent, which would normally be subject to foreclosure, rose to 1.2% of all loans, the highest level since 1999, Corelogic found.
The jump suggests that a rush of foreclosures could arrive when the foreclosure moratorium on federallybacked loans expires. The Federal Housing Administration has extended the moratorium to Dec. 31.
"Even though foreclosure rates are at a historic low, the spike in 150-day past-due loans points to bumpy waters ahead,” Frank Martell, president and CEO of Corelogic, said in a news release.
A separate report, by the foreclosure and real-estate information service Realtytrac, suggests that pandemic-related foreclosures have already started, despite the moratorium.
The number of homes that have
been the subject of some sort of foreclosure filing – a default notice, bank repossession or auction notice – jumped 20% in October from the previous month, Realtytrac found.
In the Columbus area, 69 homeowners received some foreclosure notice in October, up from 32 in September, according to Realtytrac, which is a division of Attom Data Solutions.
“It's a little surprising to see foreclosure activity increasing in spite of the various foreclosure moratoria that are in place,” Rick Sharga, executive vice president of Realtytrac, said in a news release.
However, Realtytrac also noted that the number of foreclosure filings in October was 79% below a year ago, indicating that for most homeowners, the moratorium is so far holding.
“It's likely that many of these properties were already in the early stages of default prior to the pandemic, or are vacant and abandoned, which makes them candidates for expedited foreclosure actions,” Sharga explained.
As delinquencies rise, so too have home sales and prices, illustrating how the pandemic has benefitted many while leaving others behind.
Numbers posted Tuesday on the Franklin County Auditor's real-estate dashboard showed that home sales in the county rose 38% from last October. Even more dramatic: The median sales price of $210,000 was up 15% from a year ago.
“The Franklin County housing market remains one of the hottest in the country,” Franklin County Auditor Michael Stinziano said. “The market has been resilient, despite economic headwinds from the pandemic.” jweiker@dispatch.com @Jimweiker