The percentage of short sales and REO sales jumped by 2.2 percentage points in the first quarter of 2015, the largest increase since the first quarter of 2012, according to data released by Clear Capital on Monday. Three years ago, the last time distressed saturation rate experienced an increase that large, nationwide distressed saturation hit a peak of 38 percent. For Q1 2015, the nationwide distressed saturation was reported at 19.8 percent.
All four regions – the South, the Northeast, the West, and the Midwest – saw an increase in distressed saturation rate in Q1 from the fourth quarter of 2014. The largest increase was in the Midwest, at 3.8 percentage points. The rise in distressed saturation comes on the heels of home price moderation that began in 2013 and continued throughout 2014. Florida, which has been the state hit hardest by the foreclosure crisis, had a distressed saturation rate of 30.6 percent in Q1, more than 7 percent higher than any other state in the Southern region.
Reactions to Friday's release of Black Knight Financial Services' and the Five Star Institute's white paper titled Analysis and Study of CFPB Consumer Complaint Data Related to Mortgage Servicing Activities were positive within the industry. A spokesman from Freddie Mac attributed the lower complaint volume to the "rising diligence and effectiveness of many servicers" while Tim Rood, Chairman of the Collingwood Group, said the report was "insightful and should quiet critics of the industry's customer service."