The number of mortgages in forbearance in the United States continues to inch down each week, though 3.7 million Americans still have payments paused, the Mortgage Bankers Association announced Monday.
The share of mortgages decreased from 7.67 percent to 7.44 percent as of August 2, according to MBA.
“The share of loans in forbearance declined at a more rapid pace last week, with many borrowers who had been making payments while in forbearance deciding to exit. New forbearance requests increased, but are still well below the level of exits,” said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s Senior Vice President and Chief Economist.
The MBA report found:
- The share of Ginnie Mae loans in forbearance decreased from 10.28 percent to 10.06 percent.
- The share of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans in forbearance decreased from 5.41 percent to 5.19 percent.
- The share of independent mortgage bank loans in forbearance dropped from 7.81 percent to 7.71 percent, while bank loans dropped from 7.95 percent to 7.63 percent.
Overall, 40.87 percent of loans in forbearance are in the initial stage, while 58.43 percent are in extensions. The remaining 0.7 percent are forbearance re-entries, MBA said.