2nd housing crisis, 2010

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

The US housing market could be looking at a second steep decline in 2010 after statistics released last week show how poorly the Obama administration's mortgage modification plan is working.

The millions of families hoping for a permanent mortgage modification may never get one -- and with their homes worth less than they owe on their loans, they may decide to walk away from the home voluntarily or be foreclosed upon as their trial modifications expire.

The snail's pace of permanent mortgage modifications -- just 31,382 out of 3.3 million eligible loans have been cut -- could result in hundreds of thousands of additional vacant homes, which could accelerate the decline in house values.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/new_...qW9pMpEzBaD1tEI

[LaL 418]

I am pretty perplexed at how so few were able to convert from temporary to permanent loans. I don't know the qualifications to do so, however it just doesn't make sense that most aren't eligible. Unless it was just a stalling measure so the entire bottom didn't fall out at one time? idk. /confused.

Edited December 14, 2009 by LaL

[lostinblue 1,989]

According to Bank of America, 2/3 of mortgage mod attempts are projected to fail.

[scandal 951]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi...0,4318545.story

Chicago among leaders in loan modifications

But many still struggle to qualify

By Mary Ellen Podmolik Tribune reporter

December 11, 2009

Some 36,000 troubled local homeowners have received temporary and permanent loan modifications, making the Chicago area one of the top places in the nation for the Obama administration's housing plan.

That's little solace to many local residents, however, who continue to struggle to receive assistance through the Home Affordable Modification Program.

Borrowers report that they've had trouble navigating a circuitous process and that mortgage servicers are losing paperwork. Servicers, meanwhile, say homeowners aren't supplying the documentation necessary to get modifications approved.

Nationally, more than 728,000 active modifications were under way at the end of November, but the overwhelming majority were still in the trial period, the Treasury Department said Thursday. Only 31,382 mortgages across the nation were permanently made more affordable.

Since the administration in February announced the program, with the goal of reducing mortgage payments for as many as 4 million homeowners, 78 mortgage servicers signed up to participate. However, the pace at which borrowers are moved from trial periods to permanent modifications has been slower than expected and the success erratic from one servicer to another.

For instance, Thursday's report showed that Bank of America, the nation's largest servicer, has made only 98 permanent modifications. Other banks fared better, but new data shows the tide of borrowers needing assistance continues to grow.

A report issued Thursday showed 9.41 percent of mortgages in the Chicago area were 90 days or more delinquent in October. That compares with a delinquency rate of 5.02 percent in October 2008, according to First American CoreLogic. Separately, Web site RealtyTrac said Illinois' foreclosure filings in November were 108 percent higher than a year ago, and more than 8,500 homeowners received default notices last month.

"It seems like not all the banks have this down pat," said Johnny Placeres, director of Neighborhood Housing Services' Fox Valley office. "Everyone is doing it different, and some are better than others. The good ones are bad, and the bad ones are horrible."

Delinquent borrowers find themselves falling into two categories: those with a modification and those without. And even the "haves" are dealing with lingering concerns.