The U.S. mortgage delinquency rate dropped by 11 basis points in May to 3.10%, according to new data from Black Knight Inc. (NYSE:BKI). This is the second lowest that the rate has ever been – the record low is 2.92% from last March.
The number of borrowers who were a single payment past due improved by 94,000, a 9.5% decline that erased nearly half of the prior month’s increase. Serious delinquencies (loans 90 or more days past due) were down by 18,000 from April, a 3.7% drop.
However, foreclosure starts increased to 25,400 for the month, 2.2% uptick. Still, they remain near April’s six-month low and 41% below the same period in pre-pandemic May 2019.
Foreclosure actions were started on 5.1% of serious delinquencies in May, up only marginally from April and still more than a full percentage point below the March 2020 rate at the start of the pandemic.
Mississippi led the states with a non-current rate of 7.34% while Washington had the fewest delinquencies at 1.92%.
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