Foreclosure Activity Decreases to Lowest since 2006

CF Funding is happy to share that foreclosure activity has been reported at its lowest levels since before the housing crash. In the first half of 2014 (January through June) there were 613,874 foreclosure filings, which is a 23 percent decrease from the first half of last year. As CF Funding mentioned earlier this month on their blog, the Obama administration is taking steps to continue to decrease foreclosures, and the lender expects that more improvement is to come in the next few years as the economy improves.

The Midyear 2014 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, released this week by RealtyTrac, revealed that one in 214 homes in the U.S. reported a foreclosure in the first six months of this year (about 0.47 percent). Foreclosure activity for June totaled 107,194 properties, which is down 2 percent from May 2014 and down 16 percent from a year ago. Ten states reached their lowest levels of foreclosure activity since the housing crash in 2006, including Texas, Georgia, Colorado, Tennessee, Arizona, and Nevada. CF Funding is licensed in Texas, Florida, and Colorado, and the lender was happy to see such high foreclosure improvement in those states.

Only nine states saw an increase in foreclosure activity in the first half of 2014 in comparison to the first half of 2013. Those states include New Jersey (up 54 percent), Maryland (up 18 percent), and Iowa (up 10 percent).

It may be disheartening to see that Illinois is ranked at the country’s third highest foreclosure rate in the first half of 2014, at one in every 123 housing units. However, Illinois has a longer foreclosure filing process than many other states in the country. This means that although foreclosures are recovering in Illinois, the statistics reporting a decrease in filings may lag behind other states by a few months. CF Funding is happy to share that Illinois foreclosure activity did decrease 16 percent in comparison to the second half of 2013, and 32 percent from a year ago. The Chicago metro area also saw a 30 percent decrease in foreclosure activity in the first half of 2014 compared to a year ago.

Those who are in danger of foreclosure should contact CF Funding today to take advantage of free credit repair services with a refinance. The lender has assisted thousands of homeowners to regain positive equity in their homes. Call 888-344-4080 or visit www.cffunding.com today. 

Affordable Housing Programs Extended through December 2016

CF Funding is pleased to share that the Obama administration has announced the expansion of its affordable housing program. The program helps to support the construction of rental housing, and provides assistance to underwater homeowners in order to avoid foreclosures. The administration will be tapping into Treasury funds in order to support these programs. The Home Affordable Modification Program was set to expire at the end of 2015, but is now extended for another year. According to the Washington Post, the program has “reduced the payments of about 1.3 million homeowners, far short of its initial 4 million projection.”

The announcement was scheduled to coincide with the Making Home Affordable program’s 5^th anniversary, as the program was introduced in 2009 (after the housing crash) as a means of stimulating the economy and improving the housing industry. As CF Funding has shared previously, the housing industry has come a long way since then. In CF Funding’s April press release “Underwater Homes at Lowest Level in Two Years,” the lender shared news that foreclosures and shadow inventory are continuously decreasing, and that an increase in home values has allowed homeowners to regain equity. Increased equity has allowed many homeowners to refinance or invest in remodeling projects. However, more improvement is needed to reach peak levels of housing activity.

The program is now extended through December 2016, according to US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew. “We need to continue to be there for homeowners who are facing foreclosure, those who are struggling with increasing interest rates on their modified mortgages, and those whose homes are caught underwater,” Lew said. The program not only helps to construct affordable rental housing, but allows state housing finance agencies to underwrite multifamily FHA loans. In doing so, the finance agencies take on a risk, as they share any losses from those loans.

The new program will receive anywhere from 500 million dollars to 1 billion dollars in annual funds from the Treasury and the FHA, in comparison to 363 million dollars which the FHA provided to the program last year.

The administration also hopes to bring back the private sector in order to reduce the government’s role in the mortgage market. The market is currently dominated by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which are government-owned mortgage firms. Lew said he has directed his team “to bring investors and securitizers together in the months ahead so we can uncover new paths to increase private investment.”

CF Funding will keep readers updated on mortgage and housing news on the lender’s blog at http://cffundingcorporation.blogspot.com .