Foreclosures

Both the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Federal Housing Administration are extending relief for homeowners and renters due to the pandemic crisis.

If it makes landfall as a Category 3 storm as was initially projected, damage from Hurricane Laura's surge could potentially devastate 432,810 residential properties in Texas and Louisiana, according to CoreLogic.

As interest rates tumbled throughout July, prepayments climbed to the highest monthly rate since 2004, but 90-days-or-more delinquencies were on the rise from June, according to Black Knight.

Dana Wade, a former OMB official, says a strong capital footing will help the Federal Housing Administration weather an uptick in delinquencies and ensure the mortgage market is viable once the economy recovers.

With the moratorium still in place, mortgage foreclosure activity fell 83% in July compared to the year before and 4% from June, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Borrowers will likely have to put more assets on the line to get forbearance extensions.

The agency said property owners can enter into new or modified forbearance plans if they have a hardship due to the coronavirus, but the landlords must agree not to kick out renters solely for nonpayment of rent.

From guidelines for remote appraisal alternatives to the ways that forbearance affects borrowers' ability to get new loans, here are five examples of mortgage requirements that have been in flux since the coronavirus outbreak in the United States.

A strong housing market prior to the pandemic and the subsequent coronavirus-related moratorium helped to pull foreclosure activity down to historic lows in the first half of 2020, though that could all change soon, according to Attom Data Solutions.

The FHFA and FHA both announced for the second time that they were delaying the freeze to protect borrowers and renters during the coronavirus pandemic.