The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) reported a slight improvement in the performance of first-lien mortgages in the federal banking system during the first quarter of 2019.
The OCC Mortgage Metrics Report, First Quarter 2019 showed 96.2 percent of mortgages included in the report were current and performing at the end of the quarter, compared to 95.6 percent a year earlier.
The report also showed that servicers initiated 27,610 new foreclosures during the first quarter of 2019, a 6.5 percent decrease from the previous quarter and a 26 percent decrease from a year ago. Servicers completed 17,561 mortgage modifications in the first quarter of 2019, and 72.6 percent of the modifications reduced borrowers’ monthly payments.
The first-lien mortgages included in the OCC’s quarterly report comprise 31 percent of all residential mortgages outstanding in the United States or approximately 16.7 million loans totaling $3.2 trillion in principal balances. This report provides information on mortgage performance through March 31, 2019, and it can be downloaded from the OCC’s website, www.occ.gov.