Market Studies

Despite a monthly uptick in foreclosure starts, first quarter foreclosure activity fell to a six-year low, according to RealtyTrac's foreclosure market report for the first quarter and March. Data from RealtyTrac showed 442,117 properties received some type of foreclosure filing in Q1. The figure represents the lowest level since Q2 2007 and a quarterly and yearly decrease of 12 percent and 23 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, foreclosure starts, which numbered 73,113 in March, moved higher for the second straight month and posted a 2 percent increase from February.

After spiking one week ago, first-time claims for unemployment insurance fell sharply to 346,000 for the week ending April 6, a drop of 42,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected claims to fall to 365,000. Initial jobless claims for the week ending March 30 were revised up to 388,000 from the originally reported 385,000, increasing an unexpected 31,000 from one week earlier.

The Obama administration released Wednesday its budget proposal for fiscal year (FY) 2014, revealing that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) may require a bailout of up to $943 million to reinforce its capital reserves. The agency has drawn fire in recent months over the losses it took from insuring risky loans before the crisis. In a conference call with reporters, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan explained the ground gained from the estimated $16.3 billion shortfall to today's estimated $943 million deficit is the result of newer, safer business expected this year.

The number of permanent mortgage modifications completed during the month of February rose 6 percent from January, according to the latest report from HOPE NOW. At the same time, foreclosure sales decreased and foreclosure starts increased, according to the industry group. More than 81,300 homeowners received permanent loan modifications in February, according to HOPE NOW. HOPE NOW also observed a 21 percent decrease in foreclosure sales in February. Foreclosure starts, on the other hand, increased 16 percent in February, rising to 193,860 for the month.

Even as prices continued to rise in last year's fourth quarter, American homeowners found themselves paying less in monthly mortgage payments compared to pre-bubble norms, according to Zillow. At the end of Q4 2012, with mortgage rates in the 3 percent to 4 percent range, homeowners paid just 12.6 percent of their monthly income on mortgage payments, down 36.9 percent from pre-bubble norms, Zillow reported. Though low rates have driven affordability up, homes themselves have become more expensive in many areas, even as wages dropped or stagnated.

Lender Processing Services (LPS) reported a spike in cure rates in February. About 500,000 loans were cured, or went from being delinquent to current, in February, with most of the cures reported on loans that were just one or two months past due, according to LPS' February Mortgage Monitor report. LPS also found an increase in modifications over the last two quarters after two years of decreases.

In January, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac refinanced about 97,600 loans through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), of which nearly half represented underwater borrowers, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported Tuesday. The agency's report revealed 47 percent of loans refinanced through HARP in January had loan-to-value (LTV) ratios greater than 105 percent. In addition, a quarter of the borrowers were deeply underwater, with 25 percent of loans refinanced through HARP having LTVs greater than 125 percent.

According to a FICO survey, 71 percent of bankers polled believe home prices are ""rising at a sustainable pace"" in the context of mortgage lending risk. On the credit health side, 39 percent of respondents expect mortgage delinquencies to fall over the next six months, while another 45 percent expect delinquencies to remain flat. Sixteen percent anticipate an increase in delinquencies, making this first-quarter survey the most optimistic since the surveys started.

Job openings in February rose to 3,925,000, the highest level since May 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The number of persons unemployed for each job opening fell to 3.07, the lowest level since October 2008.

Fannie Mae found consumers continue to view the housing market with relative optimism, despite wavering confidence in the economy, according to the GSE's national housing survey. Forty-eight percent of survey respondents expect home prices to rise over the year, unchanged from February's all-time high for the monthly survey, which started in June 2010. Another survey high was reached in response to the home-selling environment. Twenty-six percent of respondents say now is a good time to sell a home, a 1-percent increase from February.