The Mortgage Bankers Association says the number of homeowners getting forbearance mortgage help dropped 5 basis points in July and is now only 0.39%.
WASHINGTON – The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) monthly Loan Monitoring Survey found that the total number of loans in forbearance decreased by 5 basis points at the end of July – from 0.44% of servicers’ portfolio volume in June to 0.39%. Mortgage servicers have provided forbearance to approximately 7.9 million borrowers since March 2020.
Number of loans in forbearance
- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Down 1 basis point to 0.20%
- Ginnie Mae (government): Down 13 basis points to 0.80%
- Portfolio loans and private-label securities (PLS): Down 7 basis points to 0.45%
“The prevalence of forbearance plans has dramatically dropped since 2020, and the reasons that borrowers are in forbearance are changing,” says Marina Walsh, MBA’s vice president of industry analysis.
“About two-thirds of borrowers are still in forbearance because of the effects of COVID-19, but a growing share of borrowers are in forbearance for other reasons that cause temporary hardship such as financial distress or natural disasters. With the COVID-19 national emergency lifted, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac recently announced the retirement of certain COVID-19 flexibilities relating to forbearance plans and workouts.”
However, Walsh says forbearance is also a way to help homeowners “given the recent natural disasters impacting California, Washington and Hawaii.”
