Monthly Foreclosures Climb Again

August numbers double, with no end in sight

(NEWSER) - Another 108,716 American homeowners received foreclosure notices in August, a record total more than double last year’s figure. And this is only the beginning, say analysts, who expect even more subprime borrowers to default over the next 2 years. That will further depress housing prices, which are expected to drop 2.1% this year and 3.1% in 2008, reports Bloomberg. More»

Just getting them to admit they hold your mortgage can be an ordeal

(NEWSER) - Imagine finding yourself in a foreclosure battle and discovering that your opponent isn't the obscure lender who wrote your insane mortgage, but the formidable Goldman Sachs. It seems that after years of buying subprime mortgages and packaging them into bonds, at a handsome profit, Goldman is now in the business of chasing down defaulting homeowners. More»

(NEWSER) - Foreclosures have gotten a bad rap lately, with politicians desperate to prevent them. But foreclosures actually represent one of the best paths to recovery, writes real-estate consultant Ramsey Su in the Wall Street Journal. The people facing foreclosure would be much better served walking away from the negative-equity McMansions destroying their balance sheets. Credit scores can be rebuilt. More»

High-rate mortgages accounted for 29% of all home loans last year

(NEWSER) - Crunching the numbers on 130 million home loans over the past decade, the Wall Street Journal finds that risky, high-interest loans were extended far beyond the low-income urban borrowers they are usually associated with. Last year, they accounted for 29% of all home loans, up from 16% in 2004. As home prices surged, they were spread throughout all income brackets and geographic locations. More»

Subprime mortgage crisis also sparks rise in US delinquencies

(NEWSER) - The number of US home loans entering foreclosure reached an all-time high in the second quarter, a new survey shows, and delinquencies are up to more than 5% of all mortgages. Trouble with adjustable-rate mortgages—an outgrowth of the subprime crisis—is driving delinquencies, CNNMoney reports, with seven Midwest and Sun Belt states the most problematic areas. More»