FHA Foreclosures Approach 176,000

The robo-signing scandal has left the Federal Housing Administration with a backlog of nearly 176,000 loans that were in the process of being foreclosed upon at the end of 2010.  

"FHA's in-foreclosure inventory is at a historic high and 27% higher than it was one year earlier," the agency said in its fiscal first-quarter report, released last week. This growing inventory pushed up the FHA's serious delinquency rate (90 days or more past due) by 19 basis points during the second half, to 8.78% as of Dec. 31.  

The FHA has investigated foreclosure processing problems at its servicers, but the Department of Housing and Urban Development has held back from taking enforcement actions while negotiations over a global servicing settlement are ongoing.

By Brian Collins

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