Six in 10 Mortgage Loan Modifications Go Delinquent in 18 Months, But Mod Consumers more Reliable

A new TransUnion study has found that consumers who received mortgage modifications outperformed those who did not on new consumer loans that were opened after their initial mortgage delinquency. This improved performance occurred despite the fact that nearly 6 in 10 mortgage modifications went 60 or more days delinquent 18 months following the modification date.

The study further re-affirmed that consumers who defaulted only on their mortgages are better risks than consumers with multiple delinquencies – even when controlling for credit score – as first published in TransUnion’s Life After Foreclosure study in 2011.

This study only looked at loan modifiers and non-modifiers, with comparable VantageScore® credit scores, who had originally been 120 or more days past due (“DPD”) on their mortgage loans. It found the recidivism rate—the rate at which modified mortgages again went 60 or more DPD—was 41.9% 12 months after modification. After 18 months, that rate had risen to 59.1%.

“The purpose of this study was to learn how consumers performed on other loans opened following serious mortgage delinquency, and what impact mortgage mods might have on that performance. To do this, first we needed to determine the outcome of certain mortgage loan modification programs,” said Steve Chaouki, group vice president in TransUnion’s financial services business unit. “Our results found that about 4 in 10 consumers remained current on their mortgages 18 months after modification. More generally though, TransUnion found that consumers with a mortgage mod performed better on new loans originated after their initial mortgage default than those with no mods.”

New Loan Performance – With Mortgage Modification vs. Without Mortgage Modification

“In the 12 months after new loan origination, consumers with a mortgage mod had an average 18% lower delinquency rate on new credit cards than those with no modification, and a nearly 50% lower delinquency rate on new auto loans,” added Chaouki.

Within the population of modified mortgages, certain sub-segments of borrowers performed relatively better following modification. In particular, the study compared borrowers who had previously gone delinquent only on their mortgages—but no other loans—to those borrowers who went delinquent on other loans as well as their mortgages. The 12-month recidivism rate for mortgage-only (MO) defaulters was 38.8%, while the recidivism rate for multiple delinquency (MD) borrowers was 46.2%.

Performance on New Lines of Credit after Major Mortgage Delinquency – Mortgage Only Defaulters vs. Multiple Delinquency Defaulters

“MO defaulters significantly outperformed MD defaulters on new loans opened after mods even when controlling for credit score,” said Charlie Wise, director of research and consulting in TransUnion’s financial services business unit. “After 12 months, MO defaulters had an average 45% lower delinquency rate on new auto loans opened following a mortgage mod, and an average 63% lower delinquency rate on new bankcards.”

TransUnion’s mortgage loan modification study reviewed more than five million mortgage loans that were originated prior to 2008 and went 120 days or more past due between January 2008 and June 2010. Of those mortgage loans, approximately 559,000 records of mortgage modifications between January 2008 and July 2011 were identified. Mortgage modifications were analyzed for 6-, 12- and 18-month performance. The analysis also looked at the performance of new loans opened after the initial mortgage default. It should be noted that because loan modification programs are relatively new, consumer performance could only be evaluated up to 18 months after the origination of their new loans.

As a global leader in information and risk management, TransUnion creates advantages for millions of people around the world by gathering, analyzing and delivering information. For businesses, TransUnion helps improve efficiency, manage risk, reduce costs and increase revenue by delivering high quality data, and integrating advanced analytics and enhanced decision-making capabilities.  Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Chicago, TransUnion reaches businesses and consumers in 32 countries around the world.