Mortgage Bankers Association

Good news, bad news: New mortgage-delinquency problems are back to normal levels in Maryland , but the older cases -- borrowers seriously behind on their loans -- aren't receding. Worse news: The state has the nation's 15th highest share of borrowers in the foreclosure process, awaiting auction, and second-highest percentage of borrowers not yet in foreclosure but at least 90 days behind on payments. That's as of March, the newest figures from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Good news, bad news: New mortgage-delinquency problems are back to normal levels in Maryland , but the older cases -- borrowers seriously behind on their loans -- aren't receding. Worse news: The state has the nation's 15th highest share of borrowers in the foreclosure process, awaiting auction, and second-highest percentage of borrowers not yet in foreclosure but at least 90 days behind on payments. That's as of March, the newest figures from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

WASHINGTON -- Reflecting rising interest rates, the U.S. mortgage application index decreased to a seasonally adjusted 193.5 in the week ending March 13, the Mortgage Bankers Association of America said last week.The index, which rose to 204.7 during the previous week, tracks the pace of applications for mortgages and refinancing, both ofwhich increased after rates fell to the lowestlevels since the 1970s.The index for home purchases decreased to a seasonally adjusted 131.2 from 133.4 in the latest reporting week, the mortgage bankers association said.

The number of Maryland homeowners who are behind on their mortgages still is falling, but the pace of that decline has slowed as rising unemployment puts more pressure on borrowers, numbers released Monday show. The number of borrowers who were at least one month behind on their mortgages between April and June fell 4 percent compared with a year earlier, according to the report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. During the previous two quarters, the rate of improvement was around 10 percent.

The Maryland Mortgage Bankers Association will hold a Loan Officer University next month for area mortgage professionals. The three-day event is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 12, 13 and 14 at Turf Valley Resort & Country Club, 2700 Turf Valley Road in Ellicott City. The event is $299 for members and $399 for everyone else. Information: Call 410-312-4090 or log on to www.mdmba.org.

A measure of U.S. mortgage applications fell for a second week after reaching an eight-month high at mid-month, an industry group said Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association's index declined 2.1 percent to 1091.3 last week. The Washington group's index of applications for mortgages to buy homes dropped 1.1 percent to 443.8. Mortgage rates that are close to last year's record low are bringing more homebuyers into the market and encouraging a new round of refinancing. Sales of new and existing homes rose last month, and the National Association of Realtors said last month that it may raise its forecast for this year's resales.

Mortgage applications fell for the first time in three weeks, reflecting a decline in home purchases, an industry report showed. The Washington-based Mortgage Bankers Association said its gauge of mortgage applications declined 0.5 percent to 732.3 in the week ending Feb. 11 from the previous week's 735.9. Home purchase applications dropped 4.8 percent to 423.3 from 444.6. Housing prices rose faster last year than in 2003. The value of previously owned homes rose 8.8 percent in the fourth quarter compared with the corresponding three months a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors.

U.S. mortgage applications declined for a fourth week in five as an index measuring home purchases fell by the most since early July. The Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday that its gauge of purchase and refinancing applications dropped 0.7 percent to 756.2 in the week ending Aug. 19 from 761.3. Purchase applications decreased to 488.4, a 2.2 percent fall that was the biggest since the week ending July 8. Mortgage rates "are still at levels that are conducive to home sales," said Bob Walters, chief economist at Quicken Loans Inc. "We're just seeing a strong desire for real estate."

Military personnel who've been ordered to report for active duty are being urged by the Mortgage Bankers Association of America to contact their lenders to discuss their eligibility for mortgage relief. Under The Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act of 1940, members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard, military reservists and Guardsmen can qualify for financial relief. Benefits include the prohibition of lenders from foreclosing against military personnel during, and three months after, their tour of active duty.

A measure of U.S. mortgage applications rose last week to the highest level since the end of April, suggesting housing will keep fueling economic growth, a private group's survey found. The Mortgage Bankers Association's index increased 8.2 percent to 761.7 from the prior week's 703.9, reflecting more home purchases and refinancing. The reading was the highest since 780.9 in the week ended April 30. The index of home purchases jumped 12.6 percent last week to 496.5, the highest since the week ended July 2, helped by mortgage rates that are within a percentage point of last year's record low. "Rates are starting to move back down in the buyer's favor, but I think that is playing much less of a dominant role," said Mat Johnson, director of economics at ThinkEquity Partners in San Francisco.

Fewer Maryland homeowners were in foreclosure or behind on mortgage payments in the first quarter compared to the same period a year ago, reflecting a loan crisis on the mend, statistics released Thursday show. About 133,000 of the state's nearly 1.1 million residential loans, or 12.6 percent, were either in the foreclosure process or at least 30 days late at the end of March, a 9 percent drop from last year's first quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. The survey, which the group says covers most but not all residential mortgages, showed continuing improvement in the market for Maryland borrowers.

The mortgage crisis has worsened to the point that about one in every 10 prime borrowers in Maryland and nationwide - homeowners judged to be good credit risks - were behind on payments in September. The Mortgage Bankers Association, releasing those numbers Thursday, blamed unemployment, which is at a 26-year high in Maryland and the United States. Falling home prices are another factor, because owners who owe more than their properties are worth cannot easily sell them. High-interest "subprime" loans, on the other hand, are no longer the big problem.

If you want to take advantage of a new federal program to modify your mortgage so you can afford to stay in your house, be prepared to wait. And wait. The $75 billion Home Affordable Modification Program has gotten off to a slow start since its March launch, and Maryland housing counselors say mortgage servicers seem understaffed and overwhelmed by the demand for modifications while borrowers are sometimes waiting several months to get relief. And that demand is likely not to abate any time soon with a record one in eight Marylanders behind on their mortgages as of this spring.

Comcast 4Q profit falls with write-down PHILADELPHIA : Comcast Corp., the nation's largest cable TV provider, said yesterday that its fourth-quarter earnings fell 32 percent, hampered by a $600 million write-down of its investment in wireless technology provider Clearwire Corp. Comcast's revenue and adjusted earnings beat Wall Street estimates, and the company raised its dividend 8 percent. However, the Philadelphia-based company showed markedly slower growth in its video, high-speed Internet and phone businesses.

WASHINGTON -- The Senate plans a vote today on whether to move forward with legislation aimed at helping roughly 600,000 struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure. Although several housing-related bills are moving through Congress, the Foreclosure Prevention Act "is the most important piece of legislation out there," said Josh Nassar, a lobbyist for the Center for Responsible Lending, a homeowner advocacy group. Lenders fiercely oppose the Democratic-backed bill because it would let judges reduce mortgage payments for homeowners in Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings.

Kue McIntyre of Northeast Baltimore fell behind on her mortgage payments, but she didn't know how dire the situation had become until a housing advocacy group called to ask if she needed help fighting her foreclosure. She hadn't received a notice that a foreclosure had been filed. It isn't required under state law.

An index of U.S. mortgage applications eased from an eight-month high as purchases slowed last week, an industry group said Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association's index fell 0.2 percent to 1,114.9 last week, the first decrease in six weeks. The Washington-based group's index of purchase applications declined 0.8 percent to 448.9. The measure of refinancing rose 0.1 percent to 4,988.7, the highest since the week that ended July 18, from 4,983.7. The mortgage applications index reached 1,117.

U.S. mortgage applications declined last week because of fewer home purchases and less refinancing, a private group's survey released Wednesday showed. The Mortgage Bankers Association's applications index decreased 5.7 percent to 715 from 758.3 in the previous week. Its gauge of refinancing declined 8.3 percent to 2,179.3 from 2,375.4. A 3.5 percent drop in the purchase index to 463.3, close to the record of 501.6 set in January, suggests home sales will be hard-pressed to accelerate in coming months.

Distress in the mortgage market is stirring up a wave of new relief bills on Capitol Hill, including one that would allow homeowners to tap into their retirement accounts - penalty-free - to bring their loans current or to refinance. One major reform bill appears stuck in neutral, however: the Federal Housing Administration Modernization Act, which would raise loan limits in high-cost areas of California and the East Coast, and cut down payments. It is considered a crucial relief-measure for consumers who need to refinance out of adjustable-rate loans into lower-cost, fixed-rate mortgages.

The fallout continues. The housing market is contracting. Pending sales dropped 12 percent last month to the lowest levels in six years. Although home selling normally slows at the end of the summer, before kicking back into gear for the fall market, the turn of events is substantial. Homeowners everywhere are feeling the pain. According to the latest numbers from the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, the number of homeowners starting the foreclosure process hit a record high this spring, with 0.65 percent of all homeowners receiving a foreclosure notice - the third consecutive record-breaking quarter.