The January edition of the Obama Administration's Housing Scorecard, released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury shows a still-fragile market with a mixed outlook. Inventories of existing homes for sale and the overhang of homes held off market improved over the last two quarters and foreclosure starts continued to fall in December. However, data on new home sales and home prices offered mixed signals, while foreclosure completions ticked upward.
“While we should be encouraged by the positive trends on inventories and foreclosure starts, the mixed overall outlook means that we must remain diligent to improve conditions in the nation’s housing market,” said Raphael Bostic, assistant secretary for HUD.
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Inventories of existing homes for sale have continued to improve over the last two quarters, declining from 3.2 million in the second quarter to 2.4 million in the fourth quarter. Housing units held off the market have also fallen, from 3.9 million in the first quarter to 3.6 million in the fourth quarter. Existing home sales continued to increase this month, while new home sales declined. In addition, foreclosure starts continued to fall in December, though foreclosure completions ticked upward.
Also featured this month is the Administration’s Housing Scorecard Regional Spotlight on market strength in Tampa, Fla., and surrounding communities. The Tampa metro area was one of the hardest hit areas in the nation following the housing market downturn.
“The mixed signals that the national data show for the broader housing market clearly represent the situation in Tampa,” Bostic said. “The administration is working hard to help all homeowners who have been hit hard during the crisis and, as this regional spotlight shows, our efforts have helped more than 64,000 families in Tampa avoid foreclosure. But we have much more to do to reach the many households who still face trouble and to help the Tampa market recover.”
The Tampa market is under pressure from a high percentage of distressed mortgages, deeply discounted foreclosed properties, low property values, and many severely underwater mortgages. Although the share of distressed mortgages in and around Tampa has been above the national average since mid-2000, the local foreclosure crisis has generally mirrored that of the nation as a whole, with a significant rise in delinquencies and defaults among high-cost subprime loans beginning in 2007. Moreover, Florida has the third longest average foreclosure processing time among states, as lender processing delays and a backlog in the courts contribute to a high share of mortgages remaining in the foreclosure pipeline.
Since April 1, 2009, approximately 64,000 mortgage assistance interventions have been offered to homeowners in the Tampa metropolitan area. More than 37,000 interventions were offered through the Home Affordable Modification Program and the Federal Housing Administration’s loss mitigation and early delinquency intervention programs. An estimated additional 27,000 proprietary modifications have been offered through HOPE Now Alliance servicers. While some homeowners may have received help from more than one program, more assistance has been offered than foreclosures completed during this period (25,300).
Florida has received more than $1 billion through the Hardest Hit Fund to implement local solutions to borrower mortgage defaults and address the range of factors that contribute to a family's financial problems. Moreover, approximately $187 million has been awarded to nine jurisdictions through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program to help purchase or redevelop residential properties and address the effects of abandoned and foreclosed housing.