The Rise in Mortgage Defaults

2009 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Mayer ◽  
Karen Pence ◽  
Shane M Sherlund

The first hints of trouble in the mortgage market surfaced in mid-2005, and conditions subsequently began to deteriorate rapidly. Mortgage defaults and delinquencies are particularly concentrated among borrowers whose mortgages are classified as “subprime” or “near-prime.” The main factors underlying the rise in mortgage defaults appear to be declines in house prices and deteriorated underwriting standards, in particular an increase in loan-to-value ratios and in the share of mortgages with little or no documentation of income. Contrary to popular perception, the growth in unconventional mortgages products, such as those with prepayment penalties, interest-only periods, and teaser interest rates, does not appear to be a significant factor in defaults through mid-2008 because borrowers who had problems with these products could refinance into different mortgages. However, as markets realized the extent of the poor underwriting, underwriting standards tightened and borrowers began to face difficulties refinancing; this dynamic suggests that these unconventional products could pose problems going forward.

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 1504-1520
Author(s):  
Tuğba Güneş ◽  
Ayşen Apaydın

This paper investigates the impacts of several macroeconomic variables on Turkey's volume of mortgage loans. Johansen cointegration test, vector error correction model, Granger causality tests, variance decomposition, and impulse-response analysis is employed for the econometric analysis to show short and long-run relationships between the variables using time series monthly data from January 2010 to March 2020. Paper results demonstrate that growth of housing credit size negatively correlates with mortgage interest rates, US Dollar/Turkish Lira exchange rate and level of real estate supply. At the same time, there is a positive correlation with house prices. Causal relationships between mortgage volume and macroeconomic indicators are bidirectional for all variables, except for mortgage interest rates. There is a one-way causality relationship from mortgage rates to mortgage loan volume. Econometric analyses show that the recent steep depreciation in the Turkish Lira hurts the Turkish mortgage market. In conclusion, a stable economic environment is essential to build a robust mortgage market.


Author(s):  
R. Glenn Hubbard ◽  
Christopher J Mayer

Abstract This paper argues that the U.S. mortgage debacle must be analyzed in the broader setting of global real estate markets. Recent U.S. home price growth closely tracked increases in other developed economies. The analysis distinguishes among market regions in terms of supply elasticity and localized transactions-costs. A series of user-cost models are presented which imply that interest rate fluctuations must figure prominently in any explanation of movements in price/rent ratios. National factors such as the expansion of subprime credit must also be accounted for. The paper concludes with policy prescriptions addressing rapid price declines and elevated interest-rate spreads. We argue that the federal government should play a leading role in helping to reduce interest rates on new mortgages and cushion against underwriting losses on the existing balance sheets of lenders.


2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-26
Author(s):  
Giovanna Di Lorenzo ◽  
◽  
Massimiliano Politano ◽  

The reverse mortgage market has been expanding rapidly in developed economies in recent years. Reverse mortgages provide an alternative source of funding for retirement income and health care costs. We often hear the phrase “house rich and cash poor” to refer the increasing number of elderly persons who hold a substantial proportion of their assets in home equity. Reverse mortgage contracts involve a range of risks from the insurer’s perspective. When the outstanding balance exceeds the housing value before the loan is settled, the insurer suffers an exposure to crossover risk induced by three risk factors: interest rates, house prices, and mortality rates. In this context, Covid-19 has occurred and the insurer is faced with this additional source of risk. We analyse the combined impact of these risks on the pricing and the risk profile of reverse mortgage loans. We consider a CIR process for the evolution of the interest rate, a Black & Scholes model for the dynamics of house prices and the Gompertz model for the trend in mortality Our results show that the decrease in the mortality curve due to Covid exposes the insurer to higher risks once the shock is reabsorbed. The risk is higher the higher the age of entry. Only a significant reduction of the shock adjustment coefficient will return the situation to normality.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Ali Saleh Alshebami ◽  
D. M. Khandare

<p>Imposing ceilings on the interest rate has recently become one of the new hottest topics in microfinance industry; various debates have been discussing this issue to know the effect of interest rate ceilings on the supply of credit in particular and on microfinance industry in general. However in spite of the good intention behind these ceilings, there was no absolute result stating that ceilings have really contributed to the improvement or protection of the poor clients, indeed, these ceilings have hurt those low income people instead of helping them, due to these ceilings most of MFIs left the market or reduced their scale due to the inability to continue operating with low interest rate leaving the very poor clients without access to credit. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to review the impact of imposing such ceilings on the interest rates and to find out what alterative solutions can be employed as substitutes for them. This paper is entirely based on the secondary data collected from various records related to microfinance such as microfinance books, official websites and reports, published papers, and other sources related to the research subject.</p>


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margarita Rubio ◽  
José A. Carrasco-Gallego

Purpose This study aims to build a two-country monetary union dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) model with housing to assess how different shocks contributed to the increase in housing prices and credit in the European Economic and Monetary Union. One of the countries is calibrated to represent the core group in the euro area, while the other one corresponds to the periphery. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors explore how a liquidity shock (or a decrease in the interest rate) affects house prices and the real economy through the asset price and the collateral channel. Then, they analyze how a house price shock in the periphery and a technology shock in the core countries are transmitted to both economies. Findings The authors find that a combination of an increase in liquidity in the euro area coming from the common monetary policy, together with asymmetric house price and technology shocks, contributed to an increase in house prices in the euro area and a stronger credit growth in the peripheral economies. Originality/value This paper represents the theoretical counterpart to empirical studies that show, through macroeconometric models, the interrelation between liquidity and other shocks with house prices. Using a DSGE model with housing, the authors disentangle the mechanisms behind these empirical findings.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 849-864
Author(s):  
Arash Hadizadeh

Purpose In the Iranian economy, investing in the housing market has been very important and beneficial for investors and households, because of inflationary environment, low real interest rates, underdeveloped financial and tax systems and economic sanctions. Hence, prediction of house prices is the main concern of housing market agents in the economy. The purpose of this paper is to test the stationary properties of Iran's provinces to improve the prediction of future housing prices. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors have tested the stationary properties of 20 Iran’s province centers over the period from 1993 to 2017 using a novel Fourier quantile unit root test and conventional ordinary/generalized least squares (O/GLS) linear unit root/stationary tests. Findings According to conventional O/GLS linear unit root/stationary tests, most of the house prices series exhibit random walk behavior, whereas by applying the Fourier quantile unit root test, the null hypothesis of unit root is rejected for 15 out of 20 series. Other results indicated that house prices of cities responded differently to positive and negative shocks. Originality/value Previous studies only addressed conventional OLS or GLS linear unit root or stationary tests, but novel Fourier quantile unit root test was not used. New results were obtained based on this unit root test, that, as a priori knowledge, will help benefiting from the positive effects, or avoiding being victimized by the negative effects.


Author(s):  
Henrik Yde Andersen ◽  
Søren Leth-Petersen

Abstract We examine whether unanticipated changes in home values drive spending and mortgage-based equity extraction. To do this, we use longitudinal survey data with subjective information about current and expected future home values to calculate unanticipated home value changes. We link this information at the individual level to high quality administrative records containing information about mortgage borrowing as well as savings in various financial instruments. We find that the marginal propensity to increase mortgage debt is 3%–5% of unanticipated home value gains. We find no adjustment to other components of the portfolio, and we find that mortgage extraction leads to an increase in spending. The effect is driven by young households with high loan-to-value ratios, which is consistent with the effect being driven by collateral constraints. Further, we find that the effect is driven by home owners who actively take out a new mortgage. The price effect is magnified among fixed rate mortgage (FRM) borrowers who have an incentive to refinance their loans to lock in a lower market rate. These results point to the importance of the mortgage market in transforming price increases into spending and suggest that monetary policy can play an important role in transforming housing wealth gains into spending by affecting interest rates on mortgage loans.


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