WASHINGTON- The U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of
the Treasury today released the September edition of the Obama
Administration's Housing Scorecard – a comprehensive report on the nation’s
housing market. Data continue to show signs that the housing market is
strengthening – home equity has increased by $860 billion since the end of 2011
and August had the highest level of existing home sales in more than two years –
although officials caution that the overall recovery remains fragile. The
full Housing Scorecard is available online at www.hud.gov/scorecard.
“As
the September housing scorecard indicates, our housing market is showing
important signs of recovery – with homeowner equity at a four-year high and summer
sales of existing homes at the strongest pace in two years,” said HUD Acting
Assistant Secretary Erika Poethig. “The Administration’s efforts to keep
housing affordable and refinances strong are critical with so many households
still struggling to make ends meet. That is why we continue to ask Congress to
approve the President’s refinancing proposal so that more homeowners can secure
the help they need.”
“Tens of thousands of additional families
benefit from the Administration’s programs every month, which offer some of the
deepest assistance available to prevent foreclosures,” said Treasury Assistant
Secretary for Financial Stability Tim Massad. “As the housing market continues
to recover, we remain focused on helping eligible families access this
assistance."
The
September Housing Scorecard features key data on the health of the housing
market and the impact of the Administration’s foreclosure prevention programs,
including:
- Rising home values have brought homeowner
equity to its highest level since the third quarter of 2008 and helped lift 1.3
million families above water. Homeowner equity jumped $406 billion,
or 5.9 percent, to $7,275 billion in the second quarter of 2012. After a sharp first quarter rise, total equity
has grown to $863 billion, or 13.5 percent, since the end of 2011. The number
of underwater borrowers has declined by
11 percent since the end of last year, from 12.1 million in the 4th quarter of
2011 to 10.8 million in the second quarter of 2012.
- The Administration's foreclosure
programs are providing relief for millions of homeowners as we continue to recover
from an unprecedented housing crisis. Nearly 1.3 million homeowner
assistance actions have taken place through the Making Home Affordable Program,
while the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has offered more than 1.4
million loss mitigation and early delinquency interventions. The
Administration's programs continue to encourage improved standards and
processes in the industry, with HOPE Now lenders offering families and
individuals more than three million proprietary mortgage modifications through July.
- Homeowners entering HAMP continue to
benefit from deep and sustainable assistance. As of August, more than one
million homeowners have received a permanent HAMP modification, saving
approximately $539 on their mortgage payments each month, and an estimated $15
billion to date. In August, 81 percent of homeowners with eligible non-GSE
mortgages benefitted from principal reduction with their HAMP modification.
Eighty-seven percent of homeowners entering the program in the last two years
have received a permanent modification. View
the Making Home Affordable Program Report with data through August 2012.
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